V for Vengeance
by JRush
Summary: Harry and Lash help a young woman with a vampire problem. Follows Angels Among Us. Pre-Changes, spoilers for everything up to that point.
1. Chapter 1

V for Vengeance

**AN:** _I wasn't going to publish any of this until I had someone edit/beta read it, but haven't found anyone and I'm too impatient. :) Also, this story is carrying on with the story line started in "Angels Among Us"._

** Disclaimer: The Dresden Files is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.**

Chapter 1

"Girls, keep up now. Everyone stay with their buddy." The leader of the Chicago chapter of the Green Hills Girls called to her troop as they walked through the old growth forest. The trail was wide and clearly marked as the gravel path extended deep into the forest in either direction.

The sun filtered down through the canopy of the trees leaving spots of light and shadow interspersed on the ground like a patchwork quilt. The forest was filled with the sounds of birds singing and the chattering of squirrels as they zipped through the tree branches watching the curious parade of khaki and brown as the girls trudged through the forest.

After another twenty minutes the leader called for the group to halt in a clearing. The unseasonably warm fall sun bathed the meadow in light and heat while the girls dropped their packs and collapsed to the ground.

"Megan, how far do you think we'll have to go today?" the young girl asked, huffing as she pulled her water bottle from her pack.

"Well Genie, I don't think we're going as far as last week, but I'd go easy on the water if I were you." The nineteen year old told her preteen buddy.

Megan had been a member of the green hills girls since she was little and loved the hikes and events and just spending time helping to make people aware of how to live more echo-friendly. After all if we kill the planet, where are we going to live and shop?

Genie wrinkled her nose as she set the water aside. "It's the grocery store water. I told Maria I didn't want that crap in my bag. Where's the stuff in the blue bottle that I had her get?" She said as her chubby fingers tore through her pack.

"Genie, the carbonated water isn't good for you, it leaches calcium from your system and it doesn't hydrate you as well as the stuff you have here." Megan told her in a motherly/scholarly sort of way.

"Don't preach to me. If it doesn't taste good, why have it?" Genie spat back in an indignant tone as she started throwing the contents of her pack haphazardly around as she searched for the little blue bottle.

They sat in the meadow for another fifteen minutes as the girls indulged themselves with sandwiches of avocado, bean sprouts and cucumbers on gluten free, vegan bread. For dessert they munched on nut free granola while they repacked their backpacks and prepared for the last leg of their hike.

True to form Genie whined and complained loudly the last hundred yards of the hike as the typical chorus of well-meaning sympathy and attention tried to validate her feelings and encourage her to keep trying, because the green hills girls didn't give up. Eventually she dramatically made her way to the parking lot filled with expensive cars and domestic staff waiting to drive the over privileged children back to the safety and luxury of their palatial homes.

Megan walked over to her old, faded green and slightly rusty Jeep, lovingly known as "The Heap" by the younger green hills girls. She dropped her walking stick and day pack into the back seat and turned to the rest of the girls.

"Don't forget, swim party at my parents' house next week. Bring your suits and try to bring a friend, the more the merrier." Megan shouted to the group that was being escorted to their waiting cars.

She was just pulling an old pair sweats over her spandex hiking shorts when Genie came running over to her with large tears running down her face.

"MEGAN!" she cried.

"What's wrong Genie?" Megan asked calmly, hysterics was nothing new for this girl but more a way of life.

"I lost my bracelet. The one Grandma gave me!" she wailed. "Grandma will be really mad if I lose another gift." She cried.

"Oh, Genie, I'm sure she'll understand." I said trying to calm her.

"No she won't and if I don't stay on her good side I might not get the Malibu house when she dies! You have to help me find it, it's my life!" she said with more large tears rolling down her chubby face as she half collapsed onto the dusty fender of my car. Megan had to work hard to not roll her eyes. I mean, who wants to live in Malibu these days? She thought to herself.

"Fine Genie, where did you lose it?" Megan asked giving in.

"I think I lost it in the clearing while I was looking for my other water. That's the last place I remember seeing it." She said almost hyperventilating.

"Fine, I'll go back and look for it. We can't have you cut out of the will now can we?" Megan said smiling back at her pink chubby cheeks.

"Call me tonight and let me know if you found it!" the little girl demanded as she stood with an expectant look on her face, the tears now turned off.

"Sure, whatever you say, now you better get back before your car leaves without you." Megan said with a smile.

"Yeah, as if!" the chubby child said over her shoulder as she walked the Mercedes and climbed in, slamming the back door before her driver could close it for her.

"Why does her dad have to be my dad's biggest contributor?" Megan asked herself as she stood up and grabbed her walking stick and backpack from the back of the jeep and headed back to the trail head cursing her luck.

Megan's dad the honorable (yeah right) Senator John Forthright had many back room deals and he owed a lot of people favors, but he owed the chubby little dictator's father more than most. So when he decided he needed to get the brat out of the house a little more often the senator suggested that she join the Green Hills Girls and offered Megan as her sponsor.

Megan hiked back to the meadow with her MP3 player blasting the latest music as she daydreamed, only barely paying attention to the trail until she saw the large grassy expanse where they had eaten. She turned off her music and began to walk around the area where the chubby girl had her meltdown earlier in the day and after about twenty minutes she saw something sparkling on a tree branch, in the dimming light of late afternoon.

She trudged over through the brush to the low hanging branch and sure enough there was a gold and silver bracelet of impeccable craftsmanship with the name Genie in gold inlay on the metal rectangle in the middle of the bracelet. Megan stood on an old stump to reach ornate bauble and just as she leaned forward and grasped the bracelet, the stump shifted under her feet and the ground rushed up towards her face.

Megan felt an aching in her head and shoulder as she woke up in the dark meadow. It was late and the moon was high in the sky as she touched her hand to the side of her head. She could feel the hair matted with blood from where she had struck a rock when she fell. She clutched the bracelet in her hand as she pushed herself unsteadily to her feet.

Everything spun for a second then her head began to clear. "I've got to get back to the car and get home." She said to herself as she went to push the hair out of her face only to find it stuck to her cheek with dried blood. She didn't know how bad the cut was but knew that head injuries bled a lot even when they weren't that bad so she decided to get to her car and try using the first aid kit she had carried under her driver seat for years and never opened.

She gathered her walking stick and backpack. Her MP3 player was smashed to pieces so she had no traveling music. "This just gets better and better." She thought to herself as she pulled her flashlight from her pack and headed for the trail.

As she walked in the darkness of the forest the only sound she heard was the pulse beating in her ears and the crunch of the gravel as her feet pressed into the trail. She thought it was odd that there were no crickets, owls or any other animal sound in the forest. The chill night air blew across her and gave her goose bumps across her chest and down her arms and back. She had her sweats on to cover her legs but still only wore that light tank top she had put on for the day hike. She hadn't planned on being out after dark.

As she walked she felt a warm trickle down the side of her neck and she knew that she was still bleeding, but without a mirror or bandage, there was little she could do about it now, so she pushed forward in the darkness.

Maybe it was her mind playing tricks on her or maybe it was small animals moving in the darkness, but she began to notice shadows flitting and moving in her peripheral vision and just past the far edges of her flashlight beam.

She tried to not get scared, it was silly, this was just a normal forest and she had lost some blood. There was nothing to be afraid of. She laughed out loud and proclaimed loudly for the world to hear, "There are no Monsters in this forest!" Then she chuckled to herself, her father would roll his eyes at her for being silly if he were here.

From behind her and just to her right there was the loud crack of a branch snapping as something heavy stepped on it. Megan spun around and in front of her was a tall, dark haired man. His eyes were completely black, even the parts that should have been white. Megan froze in fear, her mind trying to process this information. There's no way she couldn't have noticed someone along the wide trail and his eyes… they were unnatural. Her mind raced as he grabbed her shoulders and smiled, his canine teeth were longer than they should be… he had… fangs.

"My dear, you are mistaken. There ARE monsters in this forest." He said as he bent his head and pulled her to him then his fangs sank deep into her throat as her shrill scream split the silence of the night.

* * *

><p>"Harry, I'm telling you, it's just not professional." Lash insisted.<p>

"Maybe not for a banker or a lawyer, but I'm a Wizard, we have a lower bar." I protested.

"Harry, it could hurt your credibility." She continued sounding logical.

"Lash, I have an ad in the yellow pages and sign on my door that says Wizard. Exactly how much credibility do you think I have with the general populace? Besides, it adds to the ambiance." I asked diplomatically.

"Harry, it's your office, but I'm telling you, you should rethink it." Lash frowned furiously.

"It is my office and that was the first piece of art I ever owned. It stays." I said firmly.

"Fine, but can we move it to a less prominent location?" She asked with a coy sexy half frown half smile as I handed her the framed picture of dogs playing poker.

"I suppose." I said with a frown as she beamed at me.

She turned and walked to the far corner of my office and turned to look at the door then the chairs across from my desk. Since it wasn't in the direct line of sight from either vantage point but I could see it clearly from my desk, she asked, "How about here?"

"That's fine I suppose." I said, compromising. I was learning to compromise a lot lately. I wasn't good at it and it didn't come naturally to me. I was used to living alone with my dog and my cat. Having another human being, albeit a powerful and extremely sexy wizard, was still taking some getting used to.

I was digging through my desk for the hammer and a nail when the phone rang. Happy for a diversion I snatched the receiver from its cradle and in my most professional voice said, "Harry Dresden."

"Harry its Murphy, are you busy?" she asked sounding a little annoyed.

"Never too busy for you Murph, what's up?" I asked as Lash gave me a scowl and walked over to me to snatch the hammer from my hands.

"We have a case we could use another set of eyes on." She said.

"Yeah, what is it? Did they find a ghoul in the park or a troll rampaging through the city library stacks again?" I asked.

"Neither, it's a missing persons case, should be right up your alley." Murphy's voice told me that she was not telling me everything.

"Why is SI handling a missing person's case?" I asked cautiously.

"It's not how they went missing, it's who went missing. The commissioner has authorized all relevant resources to be tapped to find this girl and since it's your specialty I thought you could use the extra money and a chance to make a good name for yourself with the commissioner." She said enticingly.

The brass was involved. She knew I hated the high profile cases. Not because I couldn't get results, but because I'd have to pose and shake hands with the brass in front of the press. They were the same officials who behind closed doors tried to keep me off any of their crime scenes and tended to believe that I was a nut job in the best of circumstances.

"Fine, I'll take the money. Just keep my name out of the press if you can." I said.

"Actually, that works for me." Murphy said sounding relieved. "When can you be down here?" she asked.

"Lash and I can be there in twenty minutes." I said looking at Lash.

"Harry, does she have to come along? It's hard enough explaining one wizard, but I really don't want to explain your ex-demon girlfriend turned wizard to my boss." She said sounding exhausted.

"Whither I go-est." I said with a chuckle.

"God Harry! You two really are joined at the hip aren't you? Don't answer that, I know I'll regret the answer." She said.

"We'll be there shortly." I said brightly, then hung up the phone.

I turned to Lash who was hanging an ink drawing of the Chicago skyline over the clean spot on the wall where my original piece of art had hung. It looked cool, but it was different and I needed to get used to different. By my rough estimation I'd like it there about the time Lash decided that something else needed to hang there.

"We have a paying case with the city. Let's roll!" I said and Mouse jumped to his feet and came to stand at my side. Both of us looked up at Lash who was busy seizing up the new art work seemingly not having heard what I had said.

"Why don't you handle this one, Harry?" Lash said as she continued to survey my office.

"I thought you'd be ready to dig into a new case, it's been a while and this is a high profile missing person's case." I said excitedly.

"No, you go ahead and give me the details later. I really don't feel comfortable at police headquarters." She said turning to me with a frown.

"Is it the building or Murphy that makes you uncomfortable?" I asked sensing something more at play then she was letting on.

"Harry, I just don't want to go, okay? Can we drop it?" she scowled, her cheeks getting flushed as her shoulders tensed and her back straightened.

"Sure, no problem, I'll see you at home." I said confused and half expecting to need my shield bracelet.

I grabbed my duster and staff, Mouse had his leash in his mouth as he waited by the door, his back to Lash.

"Harry," Lash said in a soft voice, "I'm sorry."

"No, that's fine. You don't have to go if you don't want to." I said defensively, not looking at her, my ego still stinging from her retort.

"Harry, I'm sorry. I don't know why I reacted like that." She said with a quiver in her voice.

I turned to look at her and her shoulders were drooping and a tear was running down her face as she stared at the ground.

"Hey, we all get tense sometimes. We've been spending a lot of time together. Maybe it'll be good for you to have time to yourself." I said encouragingly.

"Molly did want to go shopping today." Lash said calming as she lifted her glassy blue eyes to me.

"Fine, give her a call when you are ready and we can meet up later." I said diplomatically.

"Okay, maybe it'll be fun." She said with little enthusiasm.

"Sure it will. You and Molly usually have a ball on your girl's days out." I said smiling, in the back of my head I was also remembering how much the last expedition had cost me. Still she needed a pick me up and I was about to start a new paying gig so what could it hurt.

I turned and opened the door and Mouse darted out the door and streaked down to the door to the stairway. It wasn't like Mouse to act this way but it was a weird day already so I chalked it up to the moon being in the wrong house and smiled at Lash as I closed the door and left.

As we headed into the stairs Mouse took his usual place at my side as we descended to the ground floor.

"She's just tired. It's not a big deal buddy." I said scratching Mouse's neck. He gave me a concerned look, seemingly to ask if I was really that dense. It's amazing how much expression a dog can put into a single look.

It was late September and the wind was carrying an autumn chill turning the trees to fiery reds and yellows as they began to lose their leaves. I pulled my dusters collar up around my neck as we made our way through the parking lot to the blue beetle. The mismatched red and green of the hood and door with a yellow engine cover made the moniker a misnomer but it'll always be the blue beetle to me.

I held my seat forward so Mouse could climb into the back seat, and then I got into the new bucket seats that Thomas had Mike put in last time the bug was in for repairs. Mike had also replaced the dashboard which had been melted in an unfortunate encounter sometime before. The inside of the car looked almost new except for the dented steering wheel and ancient floor mats.

I started the car and with a backfire and grumble it purred to life. We pulled into the busy streets of Chicago and puttered across town to the police station. We were lucky to find visitor parking near the door with a puff of black smoke and a wheeze the blue beetle's engine stopped as Mouse and I were exiting the car. We made our way to the front desk where I flashed my consultant badge and the silver haired and somewhat overweight desk sergeant gave me a scowl as he waved us through.

We headed up the stairs towards the Special Investigations unit and there was an unusual amount of activity, more people bustling in the halls and it looked like every cop on the force was in today. As we walked into SI I noticed that there were a few members of the paranet there, practitioners of minor talent who work together to make sure the mystical community is safe and accounted for.

"What's with all the local talent?" I asked as I pulled up a chair at Murphy's desk.

"Like I said it's a big case, we're pulling out all the stops." She said still rifling through papers. She pulled an 8X10 color glossy of a young woman with long brown hair and green eyes, she wore a little too much makeup and gave a dazzling smile. I could only assume it was either an aspiring models head shot or someone's high school senior picture. It turns out it was the latter.

"She's Megan Forthright, Senator Forthright's daughter." Murphy said glancing at the picture. "We've got a lot of heat coming down from the top to find her. I thought this might be easy money for you and a big win for our department if we can be the ones to bring her in." Murphy said giving me a meaningful look. Then she looked down at Mouse and the over my shoulder.

"Where's your other half?" Murphy asked noticing Lash's absence.

"She had other plans for the afternoon." I said no meeting her eyes.

"Trouble in paradise already, Dresden?" she asked leaning back in her seat and folding her arms across her chest.

"No trouble, she just went shopping with Molly." I said.

"Shopping? How many outfits and shoes do those two women need?" Murphy asked snickering.

"I don't know, it calms them and they always come back happy so I just consider it 'girl crack'." I said giving her a weak smile.

"Harry, you're too nice to those two." Murphy said looking at me like a sap. "But to each his own I guess."

"She was really moody today so I thought it best to let her have some girl time." I said shaking my head. Murphy thought for a moment and gave me a knowing smile.

"It's to be expected Harry." She said.

"What's to be expected?" I asked.

"Let me take a wild guess." Murphy said lowering her voice to not be overheard. "She has mood swings from happy to crying in one sentence but her overall mood is irritable? She's complaining her shoes hurt and her clothes are tighter than normal." She said repeating in almost exact words what had been my life for the last few days.

"Pretty much, how did you know?" I asked as I got the same look Mouse had given me earlier in the day, but with blue eyes this time.

"She's a woman Harry. Buy a calendar and plan on being busy about this time next month." Murphy said laughing at me.

"No!" I said as the realization hit me.

"Yes!" Murphy said mocking me. "It's normal, Harry. Just don't take it personally and don't make any major changes for the next week or so and you're likely to survive." She said shaking her head.

"I don't envy your position." She said chuckling again, "Living with a powerful wizard with PMS. It could get dicey." She said giving me a sympathetic smile.

"Susan never got like that." I said defensively.

"Susan didn't live with you and I'm sure you saw her more some weeks than others?" she said knowingly. "Plus it hits some women harder than others. Then you have to realize that although she has the wisdom of the ages, she's never been through this first person before. It's possible she isn't aware of why she's behaving this way."

"I can't believe it. I've been such a dolt!" I said resting my head in my hands. It was true, there were some weeks when Susan and I were together all the time then we'd go a week or two and hardly talk. Since she worked and I was usually on a case it never occurred to me to track the off time.

"The upside is she's with Molly and she's likely to notice the signs and have a girl talk with her. With any luck they'll hit a pharmacy and things will smooth out over the next couple of days, but tread lightly Harry." She said giving me a warning look. "She isn't in full control of her emotions when her body is flooded with hormones, it can make her a little erratic." She said.

"Murph, you're always rock solid. I've never seen you break down or fly off the handle like that." I said admiring my friend now more than ever. I knew Murphy was a woman. It was hard to miss with her golden hair and blue eyes, her athletic but still exquisitely well toned and proportioned body. I always thought of her as Murphy the cop. I never thought about her having to deal with these biological complications of her sex.

"First off, don't compare her to other women unless you want real problems. Secondly, I'm lucky and have years of experience to draw from." She said looking a little uncomfortable, "Lash still new to the whole having a body thing. Give her time. I'm sure she'll learn to cope as well as the best of us." She said leaning forward again, putting her elbows on the desk. "Now can we get back to _**my**_ problems Harry?" she said with a patronizing look.

"So where did she go missing?" I asked bringing my attention back to the young woman in the photo.

"She was last seen by her group hiking up at the Sag Valley Preserves. It seems her hiking buddy, a little brat named Genie Shay had lost something and Megan went back looking for it. That was the last time anyone saw her. The next day her father sent some people to check out the area but both she and her car were gone, haven't been seen since." Murphy said sliding a map of the area over to me with a red circle around an area on the map and an X a little farther down the trail, closer to the trail head.

"We found traces of her blood here, looks like she was hurt as there is a blood trail leading to the X on the map." Murphy said back in cop mode. "That's where the trail ends."

"So she either stopped bleeding or was taken at that spot." I said.

"You'd think but her car's missing to, so if someone took her they took her car too." Murphy said shaking her head with a scowl.

"What, she's rich. They stole the expensive car Daddy bought her. It's probably in a chop shop now." I said speculating.

"That's jut it, Harry. Her car was an old beater like yours, why take it? It's not like the parts are hard to come by and it's not worth much resale. It would be more of a liability to have to hide it than to leave it where it was." She said.

"Maybe, she just took off." I said. "Maybe she took her car and decided to head for the west coast and become a starlet. Have you checked her bank cards or credit accounts for activity?" I asked.

"We're working on it but she's only been gone for ten hours, it'll take time to get the information from the banks." She said.

"Well if we can get some hair or something that belonged to her, maybe I can track her." I said.

"That's what I was hoping for. We have asked her father for her hair brush, tooth brush and other personal items." Murphy said with a smile, pulling a baggy from her desk. "I thought I'd give you first crack at it." She said as she opened the evidence bag with a large black hair brush with long brown hair still clinging to the bristles.

"This I know how to work with." I said with a smile. "If you want to accompany me to my humble abode we can try the tracking spell from there. If she's in the city then I'll be able to give you real time updates on where she is and how many people are around." I said smiling.

"Just what a girl likes to hear." Murphy said with a smile as she stood up and pulled her leather jacket off the back of her chair. "After you." She said waving her had towards the door as she slipped the evidence bag into her purse.


	2. Cat Fight

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 2

Murphy followed me over to my apartment. Once inside I enabled the wards and took the brush downstairs to my lab. I cleaned the area where I was going to be working and then set on a pot of coffee and told Murphy to sit tight in the living room while I went to my bedroom to prepare for the spell.

I started with the ritual washing, cleaning my mind and body of any foreign influences. I cleared my mind as I dried and then meditated to clear my mind of everything except that which I was going to be doing with the model downstairs. When I had my mind focused and calm I pulled my robe over my head and headed downstairs.

Bob watched silently as I took a hair with an intact root from the brush and tied it around a crystal that was attached to a long thin silver chain. I stepped into my circle and willed it to life. I tied my desire to find the woman in the picture with the hair on the crystal and pushed the image and intention in my mind into the crystal creating a link from the hair to the crystal to the woman to whom the hair belonged. As I created the links I firmly bound them with my power and intentions and finally when everything was connected and balanced properly I mumbled a few words and felt the magic rush out of me and into the chain, hair and crystal and surround them and flow through them. Then I broke the circle and sent my spell to do my bidding.

I walked over to the pewter model I called Little Chicago and began to move the chain and crystal around the city. When I brought it near the Gold Coast section of the city I got a slight tug once or twice giving me a general idea where she was but then it was gone. The connection was either broken or blocked as the crystal swung freely at the end of the chain. The magic was still in place, I could feel it searching but it was as if the girl had simply vanished. I tried for another ten minutes, getting one slight tug but nothing substantial. She was in the Gold Coast area but was either shielded or magically hidden as the connection was so weak as to be nearly non-existent.

I pulled my will and intention back from the model and carried the crystal upstairs.

"She's somewhere in the Gold Coast area." I told her shaking my head.

"Then let's follow the crystal to her." Murphy got up and reached for her coat.

"It's not that simple. I'm not getting anything strong enough to really follow." I said rubbing my eyes as I was suddenly a little tired.

"What do you mean? You have her hair and a picture. Normally you can take me straight to someone with less than that." She said confused.

"I know Murph, something's different. It's like she's shielded or there isn't enough left of her for this to track." I said bleakly.

"You mean she's dead?" she asked.

"No, normally this spell would take me to someone dead or alive. Either she's shielded, magically hidden, or she's changed and isn't the same person who used the brush." I said floundering.

"So she's been traumatized or brainwashed?" she asked.

"Maybe, but at this point shielded makes more sense." I said. "Someone from the mystical side of town may have grabbed her and assumed that eventually you'd come to someone who could track her so they took precautions. It's the only answer that really makes sense." I said.

"But you did get a hit?" Murphy asked.

"Yeah I got a few small ones." I said.

"Since it's all we have to go on, why don't we drive around and see if getting closer to her gives you better results." Murphy offered.

"It couldn't hurt." I said with a grimace, worried that my spell wasn't working.

I went into my bedroom to change into something more appropriate for driving through the city while Murphy sat in the living room. As I was pulling my pants on I heard the front door open. I heard Molly and Lash laughing as they entered the apartment and the laughing quickly stopped.

"What are you doing here in the middle of the day? I thought you had a big case to work on." Lash said in an odd tone of voice.

"Harry had me come back here so he could work a tracking spell." Murphy said.

"You had to come back here all alone with Harry to do a spell?" Lash asked like it was an accusation.

"Yeah, we couldn't have him doing his hocus-pocus in the police station. Anyway he wanted to use the model down stairs to try to get an exact fix." Murphy said with irritation in her voice.

"Really? Then where is he?" Lash asked with anger in his voice.

"He's in the bedroom changing. He just finished his spell." Murphy said angry and confused.

"Was the spell the only thing he did, Officer Murphy?" Lash asked implying something inappropriate had happened. "We've been gone quite a while, a spell shouldn't take that long." She said.

"What exactly are you implying, Lash?" Murphy asked coldly.

"You know what I'm talking about. You can't stand to see Harry happy with someone else. You want him all for yourself." Lash spat angrily. "Tell me, how long have you wanted to seduce him? Now that he's with a real woman who loves him, you can't stand it can you?"

I really didn't like the way this was going, Lash sounded angrier than I had ever heard her. Murphy was an even headed cop but she doesn't stand for having her integrity impugned. If this continued, it wouldn't end well. I pulled on my shield bracelet and headed into the living room.

"Lash, calm down, there's a perfectly good explanation for this." Molly said evenly. "Think about it, what she's saying makes sense. I'm sure Harry would never do anything to hurt or betray you." Molly pleaded. "He's just not that kind of guy."

"What exactly do you know about being a real woman?" Murphy asked patronizingly. "You've only been a parasite inside 'Real Women' until a month ago and you can't handle it. You can't deal with being a human much less a 'Real Woman'. I suggest you think about your next words very carefully, Lash." Murphy saying her name like it was something putrid in her mouth.

"You dare threaten me, little woman?" Lash said. "Do you know why Harry has never been with you? It's because deep down inside of him he knows you aren't good enough for him. You don't have what it takes to stay with him when things get tough. You'd run away like you did to you last three husbands. You are a pathetic coward. You're promises mean nothing and he knows it." Lash said venomously.

As I stepped into the living room I could hear Bob through the open trap door at my side quietly chanting, "Cat Fight! Cat Fight!"

Murphy stood facing Lash, her face red with anger and her eyes cold and calculating as her hands hovered motionlessly at her hip near her sidearm, the tether unlatched. Lash stood in the kitchen with Molly wide eyed and pale behind her. Lash's face was twisted in anger and her eyes gave me the impression that she was barely holding her rage in check as she stared at the woman she saw as a rival for my affections. I quickly pushed will and power into the shield bracelet ready to put up a barrier between the two if needed and the way things were looking, it just might be needed sooner rather than later.

"That's ENOUGH!" I said firmly and coldly, loudly enough to make all three women flinch. "I will NOT have this behavior in MY HOUSE!" I said with absolute authority.

"Lash! Murphy! You are BOTH out of line! Murphy, my friend and current employer, is here on business and ONLY BUSINESS! I brought her here so we could follow up on the tracking spell, LIKE I ALWAYS DO." I scolded Lash firmly.

"Murphy, Lash, personal insults are beneath you both. Shame on you both. Lash IS a woman and she may be new to it but she's doing remarkably well considering the circumstances. Baiting her isn't helping. Murphy has been a friend of mine for MANY years and has NEVER run out on me even when it looked like we would both die. Her word is her bond and I'd bet my life on it." I said giving them botha another hard look.

Both women turned on me, each pointing fingers at the other and talking in fast angry voices. I raised my hands palm out one towards each of them and raised my voice.

"I expected better from you both. Now calm down and behave yourselves. If you can't do that then get the hell out of my house until you can. That goes for both of you." I said looking from one then to the other, my eyes unyielding to both as gave them each a hard look. Each woman stood motionless for a long moment, my words still hanging in the air. Even Bob was silent. After a moment of silence I lowered my voice and took a deep breath and tried to calm myself.

"Now, everyone just take a deep breath. Calm Down and let's deal with this like rational adults." I said in a calming voice.

There was a long moment while the women continued to shoot metaphorical daggers out of their eyes at each other. Finally Murphy shook her head and took a long deep breath and looked at the floor. "Harry, Lash, I'm sorry. Harry you are right I was out of line." She said grudgingly.

Lash simply broke down into uncontrollable sobs as Molly stepped up and put a hand on her shoulder. Lash turned and hugged her, burying her face into Molly's shoulder sobbing. Molly gave me a confused and sheepish look. I just nodded and she continued to comfort Lash.

"Murphy, why don't you wait in the car while I get my shoes and a shirt?" I said diplomatically.

"Forget it Harry, you said it was a long shot anyway." Murphy said latching her holster. "Thanks for trying. I'll get some black and whites to start canvassing the area." Murphy said grabbing her coat and heading for the door. "I think you're needed here." She said tilting her head to Lash as she let herself out.

"Fine." I said shaking my head as she closed the door and left.

I went over and put my hand on Lash's shoulder. She pulled away from my touch and then straightened and turned to face me. Her hand was a blur as it streaked from her side and across my cheek, leaving a burning sting in its wake.

"How could you Harry?" she sobbed as she, then she wrapped her arms around me and buried her wet cheek on shoulder.

Molly simply stood there and looked at me blankly not understanding what was going on or why the sudden outburst. This was completely out of character for Lash, who was always up beat, even tempered and rational. Lash was the person I could count on to think before she acted or spoke in any situation. Now she was a slave to her emotions and they were volatile at best.

I motioned for Molly to take a seat in the living room. She gave me a look of protest but finally moved into the other room, instead of out the front door as she seemed to feel was more appropriate.

I simply held Lash in my arms and hugged her until the tears had run their course.

Finally Lash lifted her head, her eyes wet and red, her face tear streaked and pink with embarrassment.

"Harry, I'm so sorry. I don't know what has come over me." She said rubbing my red cheek.

"We all have an off day." I said with a kind smile.

"I must look a mess." She said sniffing and wiping her cheek with a teary chuckle.

"You look fine. Why don't you go wash your face and get cleaned up? I'll get dinner started." I said in a kind soft voice.

"Okay." She said sheepishly, wiping her other cheek. "Harry, I'm so sorry. I'll apologize to Murphy later. I don't know why I said all those horrible things to her, I was just so angry." She said as she turned towards the bedroom. She opened the door and stopped before going in and looked at me. "Do you hate me?" she asked her eyes welling up with tears.

"I could never hate you. We're good." I said with an encouraging smile.

"I will always love you Harry Dresden." She said, and then she stepped into the bedroom and pulled the door closed behind her.

Molly sat in the living room watching the interaction as if it were some sort of daytime TV show, hanging on every word and smiling at the end as Lash closed the door. Molly looked at me with a look of touching sadness mixed with satisfaction.

I motioned Molly over to me as I began to light the wood stove and turned on the water to cover the sound of our conversation. I explained to Molly what Murphy had suggested was the cause of Lash's sudden outbursts.

When I first suggested the idea Molly's face turned beet red as she insisted that every emotional outburst a woman had was not tied to her hormones. Then thinking about the things that had happened today, she agreed that there was a chance that Murphy was right.

As we were discussing how to proceed from here there was a scream and crash from the bedroom. Molly and I ran into the bedroom to see Lash lying on the floor unconscious, her body convulsing.

We tried to revive her but Lash's eyes had rolled back into her head and she wasn't waking up. Molly immediately called 911 and within minutes Murphy led an ambulance straight to my door with the siren blaring and lights flashing. Murphy had only been a few minutes away when the call had gone out so she took it upon herself to give the ambulance an escort.

"Harry what happened?" Murphy hurried to my side, inspecting me as if she assumed the ambulance was for me. Molly called for paramedics, who rushed to Lash's side in my room.

"I don't know she just collapsed and I couldn't revive her." I said worried and shaken.

"I thought she might have attacked you given how things were when I left." She said noting the red swollen bruise appearing on my cheek.

"She calmed down and went to wash her face and just collapsed." I said worried looking at my fidgeting hands.

Murphy took my face in her hands and gently lifted my face to look into hers. "Harry, she's going to be okay. She's tough. She's going to pull through this." Murphy said softly. Murphy supervised the paramedics as they loaded Lash onto a back board and then onto a gurney.

Once they had her loaded, in Murphy suggested it might be better for everyone concerned if Molly and I were to follow the ambulance and not try to ride with Lash, as the sensitive medical equipment may be needed in case of an emergency. Remembering my last outburst at Cook County Memorial Hospital, I decided that discretion was the better part of valor and agreed to follow in my car.

Murphy led the ambulance and me and Molly in the Blue Beetle to Cook County Medical Center. We found patient parking in the emergency lot and waited in the large waiting room. Murphy came out about ten minutes after we arrived and led us to a private waiting area and said that Lash was being seen by the doctors now and we should get an update as soon as they know anything.

After a while Michael and Charity showed up with concerned looks and plates of food. I don't know why, but Charity seems to think that food is necessary in a crisis. I first refused the plate but after smelling the delicious aroma for ten minutes I gave in and cleaned the plate. I hadn't eaten since breakfast and didn't know how hungry I was until I set the plate down. The funny thing is that it actually helped me feel calmer. Surrounded by my friends and their steadfast faith, I too began to believe that everything was going to be okay.

About an hour later the doctor came into the room. From what he said Lash's body was flooded with hormones including growth hormones in unusually large levels. He said that it was like her body was going through puberty in a week instead of the years that it normally takes. Also for a full grown woman, it was unusual for a lot of these things to be in her system, especially in large quantities. He asked what medicines, supplements or even energy drinks she had been taking and I honestly told them none. The doctor didn't say as much but the look on his face told me he was at a loss for what could cause such a thing. Then the doctor asked if it was possible that she was pregnant.

My mind reeled at the possibility. We had been careful but there were a few spontaneous moments that had taken place. It was a possibility and I got a look of shock and sadness mixed with excitement from Molly and a look of regret mixed with pain from Murphy when I said "Yes." To this revelation Charity gave Michael a knowing smile and he gave me a stern look, then a slight smile as he shook his head, as if to say, "Harry, Harry, Harry…"

The doctor told us that they would run a pregnancy test, and although he didn't know why she was in this condition, he had a course of treatment that should help to clear her system in a day or so. She was currently under sedation and they would be treating her in the ICU for now and if all went well she'd be moved to a private room about this time tomorrow. Michael and Charity offered to stay with her but I decided that I would stay in the family waiting area and wait for any word about a change in her condition.

Murphy, Michael and Charity all said their goodbyes and set out to tend to their daily responsibilities as Molly and I waited for any further word.

Molly and I sat in silence for a long time listening to the sounds of the hospital bustle and beep around us. Carts went by as people in white hurried about, in and out of the emergency room. I kept having a mental image of Lash lying in an empty emergency alcove alone and it bothered me. I knew that technically since I wasn't family that I couldn't be with her. Specifically because I was a wizard and in an emotional state my being there would be counterproductive to her getting better. However, it still bothered me.

What if she woke up confused or dazed, there would be no familiar or friendly face there to calm her. Sure the nurses and staff would attend to her and some of them weren't too jaded to actually be friendly, instead of sterile and professional. It just bothered me that when she woke up I may not be the one she saw as her vision cleared.

The next morning I awoke to the smell of food and coffee as Michael delivered two plates and a large thermos to Molly and I. Charity had anticipated the hospital food and having tasted their coffee decided to spare us that indignity.

Charity Carpenter was one hell of a woman and Michael was smart enough to know how lucky he was to have her. Charity was tall and had a nice figure and although she wasn't overtly beautiful, she was an attractive woman. However, over time I had come to find that her true, stunning beauty lie much deeper than what the eye can take in with a casual inventory of angles, curves and symmetry.

She was smart, wise, strong willed and tough. She was as strong and capable as any man I knew and honestly probably better than most in a fight. More than that Charity Carpenter loved her family with a passion and intensity that was unmatched by anyone I had ever known. Her faith was equal to her love and I pitied anyone who tried to do harm to any under her roof. To her family, she was kind yet firm, gentle yet strict and everything she did she did for them and out of love with a constant eye out for their best interests. Charity Carpenter was truly a lioness in church lady's clothing.

Although I wasn't part of their family, I may as well have been. They looked after me as if I was one of their own and I appreciated that. So as Molly and I ate our food and drank some of the fresh ground coffee, I couldn't help but think of the hands that had taken the time and care to make sure that our morning was a little brighter and we were taken care of.

I had to remember to thank Charity for this, but I knew she'd just brush me off and say it was nothing. However, being in that room, not knowing as she had been many times before when it was her husband lying unconscious in a cold, sterile room all alone, I knew she understood, it meant a lot.

We received updates throughout the day and about three, we were told that the treatment was working and that she'd be moved to a private room soon.

Murphy showed up as the doctor left.

"Harry, got a second?" Murphy asked when the doctor left.

"Sure, what do you need?" I asked as she sat in an arm chair next to me.

"We've had a hit on the girl." Murphy said. "She used an ATM machine in the Gold Coast area, you were right Harry. Also we have surveillance footage of her at her father's house. It looks like she stopped in to pick up some clothes and things. It's looking more like a runaway than a kidnapping." She finished.

"Well then, case closed." I said with a tired smile.

"The Chief still wants this treated like a missing person's case until we can find her and figure out what's going on." She finished.

"That and something odd happened. Someone snuck into the cooks room during the night and left her door ajar." Murphy said lowering her voice and giving me a worried look.

"So?" I asked.

"Harry, she had cut her hand the night before, probably should have had stitches, but treated it herself. Nothing was taken from the room, but this morning when I was trying to question her she was pretty out of it." Murphy said.

"Maybe she took some painkillers this morning or she started nipping at the cooking wine a little early." I offered.

"I can't put my finger on it Harry, but something's off on this one." Murphy said getting a faraway look in her eyes. She was trying to fit all the pieces together and they simply weren't fitting.

"How did she get to her father's house?" I asked as a new idea popped into my head.

"She drove, we have her jeep on a traffic camera coming and going." She said.

"Then you have a license plate for an APB." I said.

"We sent out the APB yesterday." Murphy said.

"If you can, ask her father if he has an extra set of keys to the jeep or if the jeep has been worked on lately." I said.

"If you can't track her, track her car. Is that it?" Murphy asked with a sly grin.

"That's exactly what I was thinking." I said.

"We tried with her Cell phone but she hasn't turned it on since the other day and her car doesn't have one of those GPS tracking devices. But if you can track it using the keys or a recently removed part, we're back in business." Murphy said connecting the dots with a triumphant smile.

"Let's hope so." I said with a weak smile.

"I'm on it." Murphy said smiling as she looked from me to Molly, then her face became more serious.

"How's Lash doing? I heard they were trying to stabilize her but haven't had any recent updates." Murphy said with a concerned look.

"She's doing better. They are moving her out of ICU to a private room right now. They said she's responding well to the treatment." I said with a smile.

"Harry, don't worry about this. You do what you have to do and I'll check in on you later." She said.

"Thanks, Murphy. When you get a piece of the car, let me know and we'll find her." I said.

"I don't know…" Murphy said, "Last time we were alone together it didn't go so well."

"I can do it Harry." Molly said from the far side of the room. She had been so quiet I had almost forgotten she was in the room. "I may not be as good as you are, but I can swing a tracking spell."

"Can she do it Harry?" Murphy asked looking from Molly to me hopefully.

"She's doing really well on her tracking spells. They aren't as strong or last as long as mine, but it should work." I said giving Molly a wink.

"Mr. Dresden?" The nurse at the door asked.

"That's me." I said giving her a wave.

"Your friend is has been moved. If you'll follow me I can take you to her." She said with a bright smile.

"So Molly are you okay helping Murphy?" I asked.

"Sure thing Boss!" Molly beamed at me and then at Murphy with puppy dog enthusiasm.

"I'll check up on you two later then." I said Murphy giving me a nod as I got up and gathered my things.

"No rough stuff and let me know the second you know anything." I said to them both firmly.

"You got it boss!" Molly said.

"You'll be the first to know." Murphy said shaking her head at me.


	3. The Vampire, Psychic and the Wizard

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 3

The room was dark and stank of stale cigarettes and mold. Megan could hear the people bustling outside of her door and could smell them on their way to work. They smelled like food. She lay curled in the dark motel room, her knees pulled into her chest on the ratty bed spread. She tried to eat a banana but it felt strange in her mouth and it just didn't taste right, she forced herself to swallow a few mouthfuls before she couldn't stand the taste and texture in her mouth any longer.

She remembered the night before when she had snuck into her father's home to get some things. She knew she could never return again. She kept seeing herself in the kitchen, stealing fruits and vegetables from the refrigerator and smelling that smell. It smelled sweet and the smell was strong. Her hunger inside of her burned and ached for a taste. She had followed the smell to the servant's quarters and the smell became overpowering. Her hunger got stronger and she was barely in control of herself, starving and so close to what her body hungered for.

As she opened the door to the cook's room, the smell was unimaginable. It was the sweetest and most savory smell she had ever known. Her body quivered and her mouth watered. As she sniffed around the room for the unknown morsel, she saw the crimson stain on the bandage that covered the cooks hand and Megan's hands reached out for it instinctively. As she pulled her hand to her face she was horrified at the desire, the need to rip into her flesh. To savor the dark rich liquid that pumped through her body. She wanted to devour her and feel the hot blood pulsating into her mouth. Megan's body flushed and she became aroused as her hunger built and pushed for control.

Before she was aware of what she was doing her tongue has lashed from her mouth and slipped under the gauze bandage and dipped into the cut. She was elated and sickened at the same time. Her body wanted nothing less than to rip the servant's throat open and delight in the flavor of the hot liquid. But her mind, what was left of her humanity was horrified by the thought. She pulled away and ran from the room frightened and disgusted with herself. As she made it out of the back door and was heading for the driveway, she dropped to her knees and threw up. She heaved for a few minutes. Then she cried.

The taste of the blood was still in her mouth and her hunger was going mad as she lay in the dark, dirty motel room. Megan had never tasted meat in her life. She reviled those who so blithely consumed the flesh of another creature and Megan refused to feed on anything that had ever walked, swam or flown. It was wrong to take another creatures life to sustain your own. Now her body was telling her she needed to feed not just on other animals, but people. Except it wasn't simply asking or telling her, it was demanding it, craving it and she knew the only way she could sate her hunger was to throw away everything she was and believed in and totally lose herself in the process. The only way she could sate her hunger and quiet the madness in her head was to give in become a monster.

The very though caused a visceral reaction and she convulsed again, this time losing what little of the banana she had actually consumed.

She lay on her bed tormented by her hunger and disgusted by the thoughts that were going through her head. She was a vegan and now she was a vampire. Her humanity and demon struggled against each other as she watched the line of sunlight creep under her door and across the room.

She had seen the movies and the as she was entering her room early this morning the first ray of light had reflected off a nearby building and touched her hand. She had the red aching sun burn to prove it. She was a vampire, if she had any doubts, the hunger and the throbbing pain in her hand only proved beyond a doubt what she had become.

She thought back to two days ago, when her only care in the world was her classes as a college freshman and the pool party she'd be throwing for the green hills girls. Now all that meant nothing and she could never return to her previous life. At that moment rage and anger filled her mind and body. It helped to push the hunger back as she thought about the monster that had attacked her. He had done this to her. He had taken her life and left her like this. He was going to pay.

She had no idea how to find him or what she'd do when she did, but Megan knew she would not only find him, she'd kill him. She started going over what she knew about Vampires, she'd watched two seasons of the show where the teen girl hunted vampires and the other one where three sisters hunted vampires and demons. Surely there was some sort of truth in one of those that she could use to battle this thing. The more she thought about it the less likely it seemed that the shows were a wellspring of accurate knowledge. She had to get good information and from someone who wouldn't think she was a nut.

Having limited options she began to flip through the phone book. She had no idea what she needed or who could possibly help. She saw Psychics and most had the disclaimer that they were for entertainment purposes only. The she picked one without the disclaimer and dialed.

"This is Aurora how can I be of assistance?" the smooth voice came over the phone. It sounded like an older woman's voice but was very polished from years of working with the public.

"If you're psychic, shouldn't you know why I'm calling?" Megan asked with a strong sarcastic tone.

"It doesn't work that way my dear, but I do get that a lot." The older woman chuckled.

"I'm in trouble and I need help." Megan told to the woman. "I need to know how to kill a vampire."

"Oh dear, you do sound troubled. Tell me why you would ask such a thing." The older woman asked seemingly taking this seriously. Megan sighed. She was glad that the woman didn't laugh at her or simply hang up.

"I need to know because I was attacked by one." Megan said quietly, feeling the rage and tears welling at her eyes. "I know it sounds crazy but it's true."

"Attacked or bitten?" the woman asked.

"What's the difference?" Megan protested. "Why do you need to know that?"

"Because my dear, if you were beaten and abducted, that's much different then bitten but not drained." The woman said confidently with a hint of fear in her voice.

"What do you mean? What if I were bitten?" Megan asked knowing the answer.

"Well, if you were bitten, then there is a chance that you may have simply been fed upon, in which case you can resume your normal life. However, there is also the chance you have been infected or turned." She said explaining as if she were describing how rain is made from clouds.

"Why would they want to infect me?" she asked.

"To increase their numbers my dear, there's a war on you know." She said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Humans and vampires are at war?" Megan asked incredulously. Megan wondered if this why we had troops deployed all over the world. Could the government really be keeping a covert war from the entire population?

"No my dear, the wizards are fighting the vampires." She said calmly but courteous.

"Wizards?" Megan asked wondering if this lady was nuts.

"Yes my dear, wizards. They are as real as vampires and they are currently fighting them." She said hearing the disbelief in Megan's voice.

"How do I find a Wizard?" Megan asked, if these guys were fighting the vampires then they had to know how to kill one and maybe, just maybe, they knew how to turn her back to human.

"Well, that's easy enough. There's one in the phone book. Harry Dresden, you'll find him listed under Wizard. You can't miss it. He's the only one in the phone book." The older lady said with a slight chuckle.

"You mean to tell me an actual honest to god wizard has an ad in the yellow pages?" Megan asked dumbfounded.

"He does and he gets that reaction a lot too. If you call him please be respectful as he is a powerful wizard and a good person. He watches over our city and has probably saved your life many times already. Please keep that in mind when you talk to him." She said with a sort of reverence in her voice. She didn't make him sound menacing, just under appreciated.

"Have you met him? What's he like?" Megan asked excitedly.

"I've met him on a number of occasions. He has formed a community watch group, of which I'm a part. We keep an eye out for one another and if we see a problem or are in danger, we call him. He can be grumpy and abrasive at times, but all in all he has a good heart and cares about people. He's the one you need to talk to." Aurora said.

"Thank you for your time, what do I owe you?" Megan asked thumbing through her purse for a credit card.

"A thank you will suffice. Please be sure to tell Harry I said Hi and be safe miss. You are on a very dark and dangerous path and it's easy to lose one's self in hate and revenge." Aurora said calmly.

"I know, but I can't let this monster do this to anyone else. He has to be stopped and I could use all the help I can get." Megan said. Is it possible that she was really psychic or did she just infer what was going on in her head from the conversation? Either way Megan was willing to take her words at face value, after all Megan was a vampire trying to find a wizard in modern day Chicago, why not toss a real live psychic into the mix.

"You are brave, child. Just don't let your hatred blind you and remember, there are those who can help you if you only look." Aurora said. "Be blessed and Godspeed miss." Then she simply hung up the phone.

"Wizard, I had to find a wizard…? How did my life get this insane?" Megan wondered as she flipped through the yellow pages to the W's and sure enough there he was the only listing under wizard. His ad mentioned lost things found, no love potions, but nothing about vampires killed. She started to wonder what sort of lunatic would actually put an ad in the phone book. Then again if someone was desperate enough and knew enough, it would make finding him a lot easier. Megan chuckled to herself as she sang, "I'm off to see the wizard…" as she dialed the number listed in the ad.

"Harry Dresden Investigations, this is his answering service. May I take a message?" the voice came over the phone, dispassionate and generic.

"Yes, please tell Mr. Dresden that…" Megan stopped. She didn't know who this was or how crazy she'd sound if she said there were vampires loose in the city. Sure the wizard knew what was going on but the people at his service may not. "Tell him that I'm a perspective customer and am in dire trouble. I need him to call me ASAP, many lives are in danger." Megan gave the number for the motel room she was in then gave her name as Jane, and asked them to put this message at the top of his stack. They assured her that hers was the only message in his stack and they'd give him the message as soon as he checked in, which he did regularly.

It was still early in the day, maybe wizards slept in? Maybe he was on another case. She had nowhere to go and couldn't venture out in the daylight so she climbed into the shower and decided to get cleaned up and wash the blood out of her hair and off her face. Feeling the warm water on her skin made her feel somewhat normal as she washed. Her hunger was still gnawing at her mind, but now that she had a chance at some help, the hope pushed back the hunger and fear.

"How DARE YOU!" Lash shouted as I felt a large discharge of energy as Molly and I approached her room, then a loud crash and a heavy thud. We hurried to the room and threw the door open as nurses and orderlies came running behind us. I stepped into the room to see Lash covering her chest with a blanket and a dazed male nurse, working his way to his feet having just bounced off the hard wood cabinets on the far side of the room from the bed.

"He tried to touch my breast!" Lash exclaimed drawing in more power as her face burned deep red.

"I was _**trying**_ to attach a Heart monitor!" the nurse exclaimed holding up the broken wire still clutched in his right hand.

"Liar!" she shrieked as I raised a flat shield in front of the orderly just in time to catch Lash's force bolt, it slammed into my shield with enough energy to send tingling pain up my arm and causing blue concentric circles to appear in the air only feet from the man's face. Lights in the room flickered and died as the equipment next to Lash sparked and began to smoke.

"Lash, he's trying to help you. You need to relax." I said pointing to the IV machine next to her bed that had trickles of black smoke rising from various parts of the machine.

"Harry! You're here!" she said as the tension in the room and magic, suddenly dissipated. I dropped my shield and made my way over to the bed. I took her hand as the nurse stood stunned looking at where my shield had been, then reaching his hand forward to feel for it, his hand passing through empty space. Then he shook his head.

"I need to go get another monitor cable." Then looking at the blackened device still smoldering, "Make that a new monitor and cables." He said as he sheepishly approached the bed and then quickly rolled the damaged machine out of the room.

"Lash, what just happened?" I asked calmly looking deeply into her light blue eyes as her golden hair framed her face as she turned to me.

"I woke up and this cretin had his hand under the covers and was reaching down my top. What else was I to think?" She said with a sheepish look.

"I see your point, but you're in a hospital and they will only touch you in an attempt to help you. So ixnay on the agicmay until you're out of here. Otherwise you may take out a dialysis machine or somebody's new pacemaker." I said calmly.

"I'm sorry Harry, I was startled." Lash frowned.

"I understand, but it's dangerous enough you being near all this equipment. If you get emotional or try something like that again, you could toast every electrical component on this floor, like the one's that are keeping people alive." I said with a knowing look.

"I know. I'm sorry Harry." She said looking up and seeing the group of shocked and dumbfounded nurses at her door, giving Lash and I curious looks. "How long will I be in here?" she asked.

"I'm not sure. The doctor should be in soon to discuss what's happened and how they are going to treat you." I said. "Don't worry. I'll be here the whole time."

"Harry, you don't have to sit and watch over me, you have a case you need to be working on."

"Murphy has things well in hand and doesn't need me, you do. My place is here." I said.

About this time the Doctor came into the room, breathing hard and a little red in the face. He wasn't young but hadn't quite hit middle age. He was about six feet tall and looked like he kept in good shape. He looked from Lash to me, then to the damaged cabinets and smoking machine still next to the bed.

"Good news!" The doctor's face wore a strained smile as he tried to seem enthusiastic. "You're not pregnant, you're responding well to the therapy you're on and you're going home today!" he said.

"I thought you said you wanted to keep her under observation for at least a few days." I said shaking my head.

"No need to. We can prescribe the medication she needs and she can recuperate at home. She just needs to follow up with outpatient appointments every few days so we can monitor her progress." He said with a nervous smile.

"Does this have to do with the incident regarding the nurse?" I asked.

"Actually, it does a little. The Hospital administrator isn't comfortable with the potential for law suits and it seems that both our x-ray and MRI machines have broken when we tried to use them on her. Now with the heart monitor and the IV machine… I'm afraid that it appears to be a pattern and although it sounds crazy, he believes it's more than coincidence. Then there's the slightly bruised nurse…" The doctor continued with a contrite look on his face. "That and since neither of you have insurance, its County policy to stabilize and then continue with outpatient care in such cases. I assure you she's in no danger and if her condition gets any worse we will readmit her. However, as long as she takes her medications and you both watch for the warning signs outlined in these papers, she should recover nicely." The doctors' face became sympathetic as he looked at us, "I'm really sorry, this comes from my boss's boss. I'm just the messenger, but if there is any change or problem, here's my card, call me day or night."

I started to protest but Lash simply squeezed my hand and gave me a smile. I took a deep breath and relaxed visibly.

"That's fine doctor, I understand." Lash said giving him a kind smile. "Please convey my sincere apologies to the nurse, I was startled and wasn't fully awake, I over reacted. I feel terrible about what happened."

"It was an unfortunate misunderstanding, Miss." The doctor also relaxed thankful to have avoided a possible scene. "I have your papers here and the nurse is getting your prescriptions. You need to be sure to follow the instructions and take the medicine as directed until it's all gone. You can't simply stop once you start feeling better or you'll relapse."

"I understand and thank you for being so kind" Lash gave the doctor a thoughtful look and then a slight smile.

The doctor laid the folder full of papers on the stand by the bed and wished us well as he left the room.

Molly was sitting behind me and had a dumbfounded look on her face. "They just kick you out if you don't have insurance?" She said mortified.

"No, they stabilize you, and then they kick you out, and then send a huge bill about a month later." I said with a wry smile.

"Wow, I'm glad Dad always had good insurance." Molly sighed.

"I thought you were going with Murphy?" I turned to face Molly with a quizzical look.

"I was but Rawlings told her they had called a big task force meeting and she had to attend. So she is going to call me here or at your house when she gets the key or part." Molly grinned with enthusiasm. "Do you think I'll get a consultant badge too?"

"No." I grunted. It suddenly dawned on me. I was no longer Chicago's solitary wizard protector. There were now two full wizards and one up and coming apprentice. Soon there would be three wizards protecting Chicago. Suddenly I began to feel claustrophobic. I wondered if Kansas City needed a Wizard as I grinned at Molly.

Within an hour we were packed and out of the hospital with all the forms and instructions in a large envelope. I wasn't happy that they had kicked her out like that. If it were me I'd have gone willingly but this was my girlfriend. It just didn't sit right with me to have her out of the hospital so soon, I was worried. Lash however, was happy to be out. She said she hated the smell of the hospital and the bed just wasn't comfortable. Which I found funny as my bed wasn't any better, but it was at home and to her that made all the difference in the world.

Molly refused to go home and said she'd have her dad bring her a new change of clothes and she would be happy to stay and watch Lash while I got some rest. I hadn't slept in the last twenty-four hours and it was starting to catch up to me. As we walked into the house Mister greeted me with a hard press into the back of my legs as he dropped into the stairwell behind me. Mouse was standing by the door with his leash in his mouth looking from me to Molly expectantly.

Once I set Lash's things down in the living room I turned and took Mouse out for a walk. When I got back, Molly was helping Lash settle in to the bed and was feeding her the pills she needed to take and was organizing them by how often they needed to be taken, daily, twice, four times a day etc.

I took this opportunity to check with my answering service, being a wizard, the tape machines don't last long, so I have an old fashioned service that actually takes messages for me. I had one message and it sounded urgent. I jotted down the number and the name, Jane. Although it was possible that this was her true name, so far of the multitude of Jane's who left messages for me over the years, only one was actually named Jane and she was selling something.

I sat on the couch and dialed the number. It rang twice before someone snatched the receiver up.

"Hello?" the young female voice asked.

"This is Harry Dresden. I received a call from Jane. Is she available?" I said in my tired yet professional voice.

"You're the wizard? The one in the phone book?" she asked.

"Maybe I'm not THE wizard, but I'm the one you called."

"I need your help. Please Mr. Dresden you're my only hope." The voice pleaded over the static of the phone line.

"Okay, calm down miss. Tell me what's wrong and maybe I can help." I said calmly.

"It has to do with Vampires. I need to know how to kill one. Since you're at war with them, I thought you could give me some pointers." She said bluntly.

"Miss, I don't know how much you've dealt with this sort of thing, but it's not something one takes on lightly. Can you meet me at my office?" I asked, wanting to get a good look at the kid who wants to play vampire slayer.

"Um… Yes, but not until later tonight. We can meet sometime after dark." She said.

"Why after dark?"

"I'm very busy today. I won't have a chance to meet you until later, but it is urgent that we meet." Her voice became nervous and frightened.

"If it's so important, why not meet earlier?" I asked.

"Because I can't!" her voice fumed over the phone. "You're office, eight o'clock, can you be there?"

"Fine, eight o'clock it is." I said as she hung up the phone.

I didn't have a good feeling about this. She wanted to know about vampires but would only come out after dark. This didn't sound good. I've had the red court take a few swings at my head and they've come close on more than one occasion. This could be a trap or someone could actually be in trouble, either way I wasn't about to walk into this situation without some backup.

I picked up the receiver and dialed Murphy, I told her what had happened and asked if she could be available and outside my office building about quarter till eight and make sure that she was alone. Murphy agreed to keep an eye on things while I had my meeting.

I also called Thomas and asked if he had heard any news about the red or black court pushing into Chicago, either in force or any small groups hanging around. From what he said there were supposedly no official visits taking place currently and aside from a few wanderers, there should be no relevant presence in town that he know about. I told him about the call I'd gotten and told him that on the off chance she was after a white court vampire, I'd give him a call with details to get her paid off and out of their hair in a non-violent manner. He assured me that any white court vampire who had a woman want to kill him, deserved to be shot on principal, but he'd look into it if necessary.

I lit a fire and curled up on the couch while Molly tended to Lash. I think they were trying to pick out the right nightgown and nail polish for the night. Since they sounded busy and distracted, I nestled down for a quick nap.

I woke to Molly gently shaking me.

"Harry, I made dinner. Would you like some?" The smell of food wafted into my face, it smelled delicious. I sat up as my eyes adjusted to the light. Molly was sitting next to me with a pork chop, mashed potatoes and gravy with a side of peas and apple sauce.

"Molly, this looks great, you didn't have to do all this." I said lusting after the plate of deliciousness.

"Harry, it's nothing. I do what I can to help." Molly beamed at me, sitting up straighter than before. She was a grown woman and a very beautiful one at that. Her two day old t-shirt clung to her loosely but when she sat up, it clung tight enough to show off her impressive curves. Even though it was only a quick, involuntary glance, Molly noticed and her cheeks blushed slightly and her smile got wider.

"Do you need anything else Harry?" The question was meant innocently and there was nothing in her voice to suggest anything but an honest question, but somehow when it hit my ears, it held extra meaning. Now it was my turn to blush slightly.

"No, I'm fine, this looks great!" I quickly took a mouthful of food to stop me from saying anything that may be misinterpreted. The food was better than it smelled. I let out a short moan of delight and appreciation. Molly was getting up and looked over her shoulder and gave me dazzling smile.

"Want a Coke?"

"Sure."

Molly returned from the kitchen with her own plate and two cokes. She sat down her plate then the two frosty cans. As she leaned forward setting my coke in front of me I noticed she was smiling at me with a coy smile. This was getting uncomfortable. I had a talk with Molly when she first became my apprentice that we would have a business only relationship and that was that. Somehow over time I think that she's come to think of it more as a guideline than a hard fast rule as I do.

"How's Lash doing?" I said seriously, part because I was seriously concerned and partly to remind her that I am currently taken and not available.

"She's sleeping. One of her meds makes her sleep. She'll need another one around ten tonight."

"Molly, I appreciate you staying over like this, but it's really not necessary." I said giving her a polite smile.

"Harry, I'm not about to leave you here to tend to her alone. Any way she's my friend too."

"So no matter what I say, you aren't leaving?"

"Nope, I'm staying right here!" She gave me a wide smile as she pulled her legs onto the couch, folding them Indian style and then setting her plate in her lap.

"Good, I have an appointment at eight that I need to be at. You can watch things while I'm gone." I said returning her smile.

"Do you have a case?"

"Maybe, I'm not sure, there's a woman in trouble and we're going to meet at my office."

"You sure do seem to attract the women in distress don't you, boss?" Molly said with a glance to the bedroom.

"I saved your butt didn't I? Don't sound so judgmental, she may be a paying customer."

"That's different I'm family." Molly beamed at me again leaning back against the arm of the couch making the tips of her breasts stand out in the dim light.

"Yep, I think of you as my young niece. I still remember you in pigtails and skinned knees. You'll always be that little girl to me." I beamed nostalgically at Molly.

"Why that's almost sweet, Harry." Molly's face looked a little crestfallen as she took another bite, and then pulled her hair up on either side, pulling hair bands from her wrists to tie her hair up in ponytails. "How do I look?" Honestly, with her hair up out of her face, she looked lovely as her eyes stood out even more and she looked kind of sexy.

I just laughed and glanced at the clock. It was a little after seven. I wolfed down the meal, thanking Molly for the food and patted her on the head. Then I took my plate into the kitchen and washed it quickly, leaving it on the drying rack. Then I grabbed my duster, rod, staff and Mouse and headed out the door.

Before the door closed behind me I heard Molly say, "Be careful Harry." Her voice had a touch of sadness in it, or maybe it was the acoustics of the stairwell. I hurried to the Blue Beetle and let Mouse into the back seat before climbing into the car and rolling out into the night.


	4. Meat and greet

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 4

I parked on the street in front of the building that housed my office. I could see Murphy's car a block down the street parked in the shadows in front of a large panel van. I let Mouse out of the back and headed into the building. Mouse and I headed to the stairwell and then up to my floor.

I was just opening the door to my office when I heard the elevator ding. I stepped inside and flipped on the lights then took my place behind my desk as a shadow fell across my doorway. There was a hesitant knock as I pushed will into my shield bracelet and blasting rod which was held inconspicuously under my desk.

"It's open." I called out to my evening visitor.

Megan Forthright stepped into my office. She looked tired, scared and a little pale as she hesitantly stepped inside.

"Mr. Dresden?" she asked.

"Jane?" I replied.

"Yes," She stepped into the office quickly closing the door behind her and hurried to the seat across from my desk. "I am so happy to meet you." As she looked up at me I recognized her face from the photo I had seen on Murphy's desk. She was bruised and her skin was pale, but it was definitely her.

"Why don't you tell me what's going on. The desperate phone call, the late visit and all the while the police and every consultant they have is out looking for you." I said with a flat look, "Miss Forthright."

Megan cringed in her seat as I mentioned her name and she looked nervously at the door.

"Don't try it, there's a cop down the street watching the place. If you try to take off you'll get a one way ticket back home. I get the impression you'd like to avoid that. I may be able help you, but you have to be straight with me. Now tell me Megan, what's going on?" As I leaned forward to give her my patented wizard stare I felt a cold, tingling, skin crawling sensation go up my back and I had a good idea what had happened.

"I was attacked two nights ago on a hiking trail, by two vampires." She began, fear playing heavily on her face. "They bit me," Her hand traced the puncture wounds hidden under her long hair. "They forced me to drive them downtown. There were two vampires, another hiker and myself. Once we got into town, they directed me to a bad neighborhood. One of them stayed with me and the other guy while the other went off and came back with two street people. They seemed to be drunk or stoned out of their minds."

Megan's eyes grew wide with fear remembering the horror of that night, "They made the guy, I think his name was Larry, they made him bite the old woman they had brought. When he did, his eyes turned black and his body… He changed. While they were howling and cheering him on as he drank her blood and ate her… I was able to slip away and make it to my car. By the time they turned to look for me I was in the jeep. They chased me and… and they ran almost as fast as the jeep. I had to stand on the gas pedal to get away from them." Megan began to shake visibly the fear fresh in her mind.

Megan's eyes filled with tears and fear as she continued to tell her story. "They screeched horrible things at me, how they would find and kill me and how they'd know where I was. I had to hide Mr. Dresden. I couldn't stay at home or I'd put my family at risk. I snuck in and got everything I needed and left." Megan decided to skip the incident with the cook, she didn't want to admit to the wizard, much less herself that she had ached and lusted after the blood of her servant.

"Then today I talked to someone named Aurora and she told me to talk to you. She's a psychic I found in the phone book, she said she knew you and you could help since you were at war with the vampires." She finally blurted out the last few sentences like they were burning her mouth and she couldn't talk fast enough.

Then in a lost and desperate voice, she turned to me, her brown eyes watery and wide. "Can you help me?" was all she said before breaking into uncontrollable sobs.

Regardless of what everyone keeps saying, I'm not a sap. I don't fall all apart when a woman gives me a teary tale of woe or the large doe eyes. This girl was hitting me with both. I've sent prettier girls away to other PIs or the cops when I couldn't help them out. This time, she had no one else to turn to. Nobody else in the city outside my circle of friends had a clue what she was up against or the slightest chance of helping her. Like she said on the phone, I was her only hope.

I thought about it while she cried. Murphy was down the street and if she saw who this girl was she'd probably want to take her in. If I took her with me, I'd be dodging Murphy and every cop in the state and the other wardens. How could I explain helping a red court vampire, even if she hadn't fully turned? If I could avoid the cops and if I could avoid the other wardens I might be able to get her to the Fellowship of St. Giles and have them take her in and train her as they had Susan. That was a lot of ifs and if I screwed this up I could lose a good friend or even my head. It was a long shot and a huge personal risk and with Molly's life at stake as well as my own, I had to give this serious thought. It was a bad idea. It was beyond a bad idea, it was insane, stupid and reckless, but it was the right thing to do.

"Assuming you're telling me the whole truth, I might be able to get you to some people who can help you. Half Vampires are uncommon but they do exist and there's an organization that takes them in and they fight the very vampires that attacked you." I said giving her a long look, trying to read her face and body language as she turned the big brown eyes at me and sat up straight. Her sweater was tight enough to distract most men and her pants weren't the baggy kind either. Her brown hair hung around her face in a recently styled fashion. I couldn't let that distract me or sway my decision.

"That's the best I can do for you miss. Like you've heard there's a war between the wizards and the vampires, the red court in particular, the one's that attacked you. If you're caught by another wizard, chances are they won't ask any questions before taking your head. If the cops find you it's likely you'll spend a day downtown and then get sent home. Without help you'll likely feed on an inmate or someone on your house staff or even your family, and then I would have to kill you. Bloodlust doesn't make any exception for families Miss Forthright. The hunger simply wants blood, anyone's blood." I said firmly.

She looked up at me with a fierce, dangerous expression. "All I need from you is to tell me how to kill them."

"You plan to go after the one that infected you?" I asked.

"Wouldn't you?"

"I get that you're angry, but I didn't think you were suicidal. You may be stronger, faster and have enhanced senses compared to who you were a few days ago, but don't kid yourself. A full red court vampire would tear you to shreds in a matter of seconds and from what you've told me you have two experienced and one new one hunting you." I grimaced giving her a hard disapproving look.

"I can't let them get away with what they've done! They can't be allowed to do this to anyone else, they must be stopped and I want to be there when they are. I can pay you Mr. Dresden, will you help me?"

"I don't do thug work and I don't do payback. I know how dangerous they are and now that I know they are in town I'll hunt them, but this isn't a safari and you can't be part of it."

"Then what's the point of being here? If you won't help me I'll find them on my own. When they die, they'll be looking into my eyes, with or without your help Wizard." She spat.

"I can't let you do that Megan. Stop and think about it for a second. You've held it together this long, that's something, but if you leave here on your own it's not just your life you'll be putting in danger. You have a shot at a life and the fellowship will give you all the opportunities to fight the red court that you want. You just have to be patient. It's your best shot and best plan of action, trust me I know." I said thinking of Susan.

"You're just trying to brush me off. You're not taking me seriously!" Her eyes began to get wider and her pupils began to expand to the edges of the color in her eyes as she stood. "You stand there and refuse to help ME while they feed on the flesh and blood of people of this city? You Coward!" she screeched.

I raised my shield just before she tried to come across the desk her arms blurring with speed as she leapt. She slammed into the shield and slid off the top of my desk. I stood, adjusting my shield to a half dome in front of me as I heard her moving on the floor.

I pushed some will into my blasting rod as I circled the desk. As I came around the corner, she was crouched and sprung at me like a cat. Her hands were a blur as they hit my shield. Her nails sent blue sparks into the room. Mouse let out a deep bark and lowered his stance, as he growled and bared his teeth. I leveled my blasting rod at her chest and dropped my shield as I said "Forzare" trying to push just enough power to put her on her butt but not enough to do any serious damage.

The lance of force shot through the air and hit her in the center of her chest, ripping her sweater as it threw her back and into the far wall with a loud THUD. I raised my shield and pushed more power into my blasting rod until the tip was white and the runes glowed orange.

"That was a warning! Calm Down or the next one will burn you to a crisp before your body hit's the ground." I roared.

She looked up and gave me a challenging glare, as she saw my blue shield and glowing rod, and Mouse growling at my side. She broke down into tears.

"You can't just send me away." She sobbed.

"I've been worked over pretty good by the red court. I know they deserve your anger and retribution. That being said, if you can't lay a hand on me, you have no chance against two full reds." I said calmly. "They'll shred you to pieces and feast on your blood before you see them coming."

"Then teach me."

"I wouldn't know where to begin. It's too dangerous for both of us. Just come with me and I'll set up a meeting with the fellowship and if you don't want to go with them, then we can talk about options then, but I warn you, there aren't any other viable options left."

"Come with you? Where?"

"My house, it's the only safe place for you in Chicago. I can hide and protect you there, but you need to understand it's only temporary." I told her lowering my blasting rod and but leaving it charged. "While you're there you need to control yourself, if you lose it like you just did, I'll kill you where you stand. No questions asked." My eyes didn't flinch as I looked into her face with a deadly calmness.

"and if I refuse?"

"Then you walk out of here, maybe get past the cop down the street and maybe live to see the end of the week before your buddies from the trail catch up to you. You could also try to run for it. If you leave right now and catch a train or airplane you could get someplace relatively safe before daylight. Except you're hunger would eat at you and if you give in, if you feed, I or another wizard like me, would hunt you down and kill you."

"So for the short term my options are slim to none."

"Long term isn't looking much better. I've seen this play out before and the fellowship is the only way I've seen it turn out well."

"So what if I kill the head vampire or the one that bit me? That'll turn me back right?"

"You want to kill the Red King? Megan, you've seen too many movies. It doesn't work like that or every vampire would simply turn on him or the vampire that made them and go back to their normal lives. It's like a disease or an infection, once you have it there's no getting rid of it. I've searched for years to find an antidote and trust me, there isn't one."

"I suppose garlic and a wooden stake through the heart wouldn't do it either?"

"Not for a red, it'd just piss them off. That stuff only works on Black vampires, the walking corpse kind and even then you have to get close enough to put the steak through their heart and trust me it's not nearly as easy as it sounds."

"So how do you kill a Red Court vampire?"

"That, you'll learn from the fellowship. Just know, even for a half vampire armed to the teeth and well trained, Red Court vampires are very dangerous. So take your time and think about it, then tell me, what are you going to do?"

Megan sat against the wall thinking and rubbing her chest where I had hit her, exposing more of her soft white skin and the white lace bra beneath. "There's not much to think about, is there. I go with you or end up dead one way or the other. So for now, I guess you have a roommate." Megan gave me a strained smile, her eyes now brown again.

"Good choice." I smiled at her as I dropped my shield and put away my blasting rod before offering her my hand to help her up.

We headed for the stairs and halfway down I heard the front door to the building bang closed and my phone ring in the distance. I veiled Megan and told her to be still and stay close behind me. My veils aren't the best but in the darkness, it made her all but undetectable.

I felt the cold prickle of a red court vampire creep up my spine as I shook out my shield bracelet and Mouse moved close to my side, pressing against my thigh.

"Who's there?" I called out tentatively. I pulled my pentacle from under my shirt and pressed some will into it giving a dim blue light to the stairwell.

A man stepped up to the landing below us and turned to face me. He was average height, his black hair was fairly short and his black eyes were totally black. His hands and arms were stretched unnaturally long and his fingers stretched into sharp black claws.

"I'm not looking for a fight Wizard. I'm just here for what's mine. I turned her, she belongs to me." He said sniffing the air.

"Did you lose something there sparky?"

"I think you know what I'm talking about, I can smell her nearby and since you're the only one here I can only assume she came to see you for help." The vampires head kept jerking back and forth sniffing and tasting the air. "Yes, she's been through here recently, very recently."

"Sorry to disappoint you but there's nobody here but me and my dog. See for yourself. Maybe she's in the ladies room."

"Wizards are tricky, vicious and grumpy. How do I know you aren't hiding her?"

"Why would I hide a vampire from a vampire, unless you've not gotten the memo, wizards kill your kind these days." I gave the dark haired man my most bland smile. "Why should I care if you hunt one of your own? It just means one less I have to worry about." I said pushing some will into my blasting rod and ready with the shield. My eyes narrowed and Mouse began to let out a low bone vibrating growl.

"Wizard Dresden, your name is held in high regard among our kind. You killed Bianca and what, hundreds of others since? You are the monster we tell our young one's about that comes from the darkness to destroy them."

"Then I would think you would be smart enough to stay out of my way." I said with a satisfied, grim smile on my face.

"Do not kid yourself Wizard, I am not a child, nor have I been considered young for some time before you were born. You do not frighten me, you are simply in my way." The vampire chuckled and gave me a patronizing look.

"I'm all broken up about that, so why don't you get out of my building and then get out of my town, before I have to do something about it."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, you see we have plans for that specific child. She was chosen for a purpose and I can't have you getting in the way." The vampire gave me a glare that would take paint off a battleship. I could feel his strength and power in the oppressive gaze. He wasn't your run of the mill vampire, he was old and strong.

I heard a scratching sound from above and took a quick step back and brought up a full dome shield around Mouse, Megan and myself. The vampire on the landing stretched his arms tearing his flesh mask on his arms as they extended and his mouth opened wider than human jaws would ever allow for ripping the skin across his face as he slowly began to advance.

There was an impact from above and behind me as the young vampire Larry, still too young to create a flesh mask slammed into my shield from above. I spun and pushed my blasting rod between Megan and me and shouted, "Forzare".

A white silvery lance shot from my rod, catching the new vampire under the ribcage and hurling him up into the concrete against the far wall, over the next set of stairs leading down. Concrete cracked and he let out a scream of pain as bones cracked under the black, oily, rubbery skin. Then he fell, broken with a wet thud to the stairs below as I turned to face the older vampire.

"Impressive, I see your reputation isn't completely unwarranted. But you'll have to do better than that." He hissed as the flesh fell completely away from his face to reveal his black, misshapen head sparsely dotted with sickly pink spots. His forked pink tough lashed out snakelike as he spat at us, the viscous goo simply ran down my shield to the concrete. I heard Megan whimper in spite of her as he brought his claws down hard on my shield, sending sparks and blue circles through the dome that protected us.

I spun my rod in my hand, pushing more power into the shield bracelet as the tip of my rod glowed white. "Tell me how you like this… Feugo!" I said as a beam of white hot heat and flame compressed to the size of a dime shot out of the tip striking the vampire in the chest. His flesh caught fire as I began to bring the white hot beam of flame towards his belly. The cut wasn't nearly as deep as it should have been. I've cut clean through vampires with this much force before and I wasn't cutting much deeper than a bad flesh wound on this guy.

He threw himself to the side and rolled on the landing smothering the flames and kicked against the far wall launching him down the other side of the stairwell into darkness. Mouse let out a loud bark, facing behind me as another vampire began slashing and pounding on my shield. The impact was sending tingles up my arm and I pushed soulfire into the bracelet as I turned to face our new attacker.

This vampire felt strong, but not that strong. I needed to get him off my shield before Megan lost control as I heard her breathing quicken and I could feel her fear and tension from under my veil.

"Forzare" I said, hitting this vampire in his lower abdomen, crumpling him into the stairs, the impact was accented by a the sharp crack of a large bone breaking as the vampire howled in pain and rage, unable to move his legs properly, he used his claws to pull himself up a few stairs, baring his long fangs in his unnaturally wide maw.

"Feugo!" I said putting more power mixed with a little soul fire into the strike. The orange slivery beam hit this one just above the pubic bone and I pulled it slowly up to his chest, spilling blood and viscera onto the stairs as the body began to burn in greasy red and dark blue gouts of flame. I pulled Megan down the stairs as the blood and gore began to catch fire, pouring greasy black smoke into the stairwell. I leveled my rod at its head as it lay and squirm in torment, "Feugo." I said again and sent a beam of fire and hate up under its chin and into its skull, the beam bore out through the top of its head as steam and fire erupted from the tiny hole. The vampire fell limp burning and stinking up the place.

We quickly pushed to the stairwell where we had encountered the first vampire and as I scanned the stairs, walls and ceiling for any sign of another attack, I saw nothing. The body of the younger vampire was gone and there was no sign of his master.

Emergency lights lit the landing as water began to pour into the stairwell, disrupting my veil and making the concrete steps slick as the fire alarms wailed with an earsplitting sound as we carefully made our way to the front of the building.

As we neared the front doors I could see the flashing blue and red of Murphy's police lights and I saw her enter the building. I wanted to veil Megan again but Murphy was already advancing in the orange emergency lights filling the lobby.

"Harry! Are you alright?" Murphy asked loudly over the din.

I simply pointed to the doors and slipped off my duster and put it around Megan and pushed up the collar. The coat was much too large and long for the young woman but it helped to hide her face as we moved into the chilly night air.

"Murph I'm fine, we just had a trespasser." I said with a tired smile. "I need to get my client home now." I said pushing past her.

"Not so fast Harry. Who do you have under the coat?"

"You'll have to trust me on this one, you don't want to know."

"Harry, what's going on?"

"It's something that SI will want to investigate, but you definitely don't want to bring this woman into it. It'll be nothing but a problem for you and the department for a long time to come. Believe me."

"Okay then, what just happened?"

"We were jumped by three red court vampires. They are new to the area and are trying to bolster their ranks with the fine citizens of Chicago, even the rich and powerful ones." I said giving her a long look.

"Oh God Harry. Tell me you're joking!" Murph scowled putting the pieces together.

"I wish I was, but if I stay here your friends will want to take her in and that's a really, really bad idea."

"Fine, Harry. Get her out of here but I need you to explain what's going on later. I'll stop by. For now I'll just say I saw three perpetrators flee the scene just before the alarm went off. Maybe I can chalk it up to vandalism."

"Actually, only two made it out, there's one on fire in the stairwell." I said with a smile as I slipped my blasting rod through my belt.

"Great, so how do I explain it now? Gang activity?"

"Works for me Murph, just keep me and the kid out of it."

"Then you better start moving." Murphy pointed into the night as the wail of sirens and emergency vehicles started to get closer.

"Thanks Murph, I'll fill you in later." I told her as I hurried Mouse and Megan away from the building and into my car. We went down two blocks before we turned and as we made the left turn, I saw the lights of the first black and white car pulling onto the scene.

"That was close." I sighed.

"The first vampire, the one that attacked me, the one who did all the talking, you barely scratched him." Megan whispered horrified.

"You saw what I did to the other two. If he's that tough then you wouldn't stand a chance against him alone."

"I can't believe it. You nailed the other two, but the one, you barely hurt. Why?"

"He's old and strong. The other two were young to average, but that one, he's old. The older they get the more powerful they become. Some of the older vampires have even learned to use magic and others can move so fast you can hardly see them. This guy, I'm not sure what his deal is but I do know that he's smart, tough and he definitely wants you for more than a foot soldier."

"Me? What's so special about me?"

"Isn't your dad a senator?"

"Well, yeah, but… What? They want to use me to manipulate him?"

"Could be, but they may also want you to turn him. It's all speculation for now, who knows maybe you have a strange birthmark that fulfills a bloodsucking prophecy or something. Maybe he just thinks you're cute. Either way, he's after you and isn't going to stop. We need to get you to someplace safe."

"But if you can't fight him, how are you going to protect me?"

"Megan, I have not yet begun to fight." I gave her a cheesy smile and stepped a little harder on the accelerator getting a backfire and small increase in speed for my trouble. Megan sat back in the seat and buckled her seat belt as we sped through the dots of light from street lamps on the pavement as we drove through the streets of the city.


	5. The Fellowship

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 5

AN: Sorry for the delay in getting this out. Real life caught up to me this month. More soon!

Gravel crunched under the tires of the blue beetle as we slipped into my parking area at my boarding house. Mouse, Megan and I got out of the car and headed downstairs to my apartment. Molly was stoking the fire as we came in. I locked and reset my wards before taking Megan into the living room and introduced her to Molly.

I explained Megan's circumstances to Molly while Mouse found a comfortable spot in front of the fire and curled up with his face to us, seemingly keeping an eye on us as we discussed how best to proceed. After we had described Megan's last few days to Molly and the fight at my office building, Molly looked a little uneasy.

After pulling me into the kitchen, Molly stepped uncomfortably close to me and lowered her voice.

"Harry, is it really safe for her to be here? What happens if she loses control?" Molly's face looked worried and her eyes were tracking Megan in the other room.

"Then we contain her as best we can."

Molly stood on her toes and leaned forward whispering in my ear, pressing her chest against mine in the process. "What if we can't contain her, Harry? What do we do then?"

"Then we do what we have to. I've already made it clear that if she loses control or attacks anyone here I'm not going to pull any punches. After the fight in the stairwell at my office, I think I made a believer out of her. She'll behave." I reassured her.

"If you say so boss, but with Lash sick, this isn't the best time for company."

"It's not like I can stash her in a motel room or send her to your house. We have limited options here. The other vampire is still out there and he's looking for her and he's tough. I'm going to see if I can get a representative of the Fellowship to come talk to her, their better equipped for this sort of thing, but until then I can keep her safe here." I explained my reasoning trying to calm Molly.

"Who's going to keep you safe?" Molly's eyes were looking into mine and her worry and concern pulled at her face.

"I'm a big boy, I can look after myself."

"Harry, if anything happened to you… It's not just you that would be hurt. Lash is in Love with you and with the doom looming over our heads. My life is tied to yours." Molly's eyes were beginning to get misty as she put her arms around my shoulders and leaned her cheek against my chest. Her face was clouded with fear and worry. "You have to be careful, you have responsibilities and people who love and count on you, Harry. Don't let us down."

I put one are around her shoulder, her body stiffened at my touch then she nuzzled her face into my chest and leaned her body into mine as I stroked her hair gently to calm and reassure her.

"Molly, I'm not going anywhere. I'd never let you down. I made a promise to you and your family that I'd look after and take care of you. I never make a promise I don't intend to keep, especially to pretty wizards." I could feel her breath and the warmth of her body pressing into mine as her body quivered with quiet tears.

"Do you really think I'm pretty?" her voice was quiet and unsteady.

"Yes, I do, inside and out." I felt my heart jump as I revealed my guilty secret and felt her tighten her embrace. "Molly you're going to be one hell of a wizard because you're smart, pig headed and have me as your mentor." I chuckled. "If anyone says different, they'll have to answer to me." I took her head in my hands I lifted her face towards mine and then kissed her forehead. I pulled her hair back from her face so I could look into her eyes and smile.

She looked up at me with a reluctant smile and loosened her hold on my but didn't pull away, our bodies still sharing warmth and contact for a brief moment she looked into my face her eyes vulnerable and scared. Then instinctively, I pulled away becoming self-conscious.

"It's going to be fine, Molly." I gave her an honest and reassuring look.

"Okay Harry." Molly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, smearing her makeup, and then she laughed. "But if you die, I will never talk to you again!"

"That's fair. Now, maybe we should get back into the living room before our guest gets the wrong idea."

"Fine, should I offer her a coke? Does she drink… other things?" Molly asked as she opened my icebox and leaned her head inside.

"She can hear you," Megan said from the other room, "and no thank you, but a glass of water would be nice if you don't mind" Megan's voice came clearly from the other room.

I laughed at the look of shock on Molly's face as Megan replied. Vampires have heightened senses, smell, hearing etc. She probably heard our whole conversation and that made me uncomfortable and embarrassed for a whole new set of reasons.

I took the Coke Molly held out to me and then filled a glass with ice and water then headed into the living room.

I handed the glass to Megan with a smile. She was sitting in an armchair near the fire. I walked over to the couch and sat down near her.

"Can we get you anything else? Would you like a sandwich or something?" I asked.

"Honestly I'm not hungry. Food isn't sitting too well with me right now."

"Megan, I'm going to help you but I need you to understand you pose a threat to everyone in this house as long as you are not in control of your hunger. Also even with my wards, it's possible that your friends could trace you here. I'm going to help you but to make sure they can't track you I'm going to have to setup a space for you to stay that's protected and I need you to stay in that space while you are here."

"Okay, so you're going to put me in a lead room or something?"

"Not so drastic, but similar idea, instead of lead I'm going to put you in a circle that won't allow magic in or out, in effect it will take you off the supernatural radar. As long as you stay in the confines of the circle you will be fine, but if you leave it for any reason, you'll be traceable and in danger."

"Okay… What do I do while I'm in the circle?"

"You don't have to do anything. In fact I'd like to help you to sleep so you won't get bored and won't have to deal with your hunger. It'll be safer and easier for all concerned."

"So you want to drug me?" Megan gave me a look of skeptical reluctance.

"No, this will be a magical sleep and you don't have to worry about side effects."

"Just promise me you'll wake me if anything interesting happens and that you won't kill me while I sleep." Megan said.

"I promise."

"Hmmm… alright, I suppose it's as good an idea as any." Megan said with a half-smile.

Molly and I went down stairs to prepare a circle for her, while Megan changed into one of Molly's extra pairs of sweats. We moved the tables and made room for a circle a little more than five feet across and also laid wards around the circle to keep Megan inside and also to warn us if she broke out. I didn't want to hurt her but wanted to have a deterrent in case she woke up and tried to break out.

Once everything was in place Megan came downstairs and we set her up with water bottles, what fruit I had in the house and my thick camping sleeping bag. When she was ready I put my hand over her eyes and mumbled a few words pushing will and energy into her putting her into a deep sleep. I've seen this spell keep people out for days, so I was careful how much power I put into it as I didn't want her out for more than eight to ten hours.

Megan's eyes closed and her breathing slowed to deep long breaths. I gathered my will and touched the circle and felt it snap into place as the circle and its wards came to life.

Molly and I went upstairs. While she went into the bathroom to change I went to the phone and called Edinburg. The phone rang a few times before the young voice answered.

"This is Harry Dresden. I need to have a meeting with the local representative for the Fellowship of St. Giles as soon as possible." I said calmly.

"Um… May I ask what this appointment is concerning?" the young woman asked tentatively.

"I have a new recruit for them. A young woman was attacked and needs their help." I replied over the static of the line.

"I see. Is there anything else?" she asked tentatively.

"Yes, could you pass a message to Wizard McCoy and ask him to call me?"

"Sure thing Wizard Dresden."

"Thanks." I hung up the phone and turned to find Molly wearing one of the nightgowns she had helped me pick out for Lash when she was in the hospital. It was long and dark red with black lace trim in all the right spots.

"Fancy." I said.

"Thanks boss, you picked it out." Molly gave a quick turn and struck a model pose. The nightgown fit her well and clung nicely in all the right places showcasing her curves and womanly features. I smiled at her and couldn't help but laugh.

"Cute." I grinned at her. Then I tossed a pillow on the couch for her, followed by sheets and blankets. Then I turned and tended to the fire and added a few large logs that should burn late into the night.

I headed into my room and Lash was curled up in the bed effectively taking up the entire bed, Mouse looked up at me from the foot of the bed with a sleepy smile.

"I hope you're comfortable." I smirked at the dog and ruffled his hair. I grabbed a few pillows and blankets from the closet and headed back into the living room.

I made my bed between the open door to the lab and the fireplace.

"Did she kick you out?" Molly asked quietly.

"No, she just looked too comfortable to disturb." I said grimacing.

Molly sat up, the dim firelight giving life to the nightgown as the blankets fell to her lap. "You can have the couch boss." She said quietly.

"I'm fine, grasshopper." I smiled at her and motioned for her to lie down. I rolled over to face the fire and went to sleep.

I woke to the phone ringing at six in the morning. I sat up and groped for the receiver.

"Harry Dresden." I mumbled into the phone.

"Wizard Dresden, this is Trish from Edinburg. You asked for a meeting with the representative from the Fellowship of St. Giles. I wanted to inform you that your meeting has been set up for this morning at ten O'clock your time at McAnally's pub. Will that be acceptable?"

"That should be fine Trish. Thanks!"

"Very well, I'll confirm your appointment. Will the girl be with you?"

"Yes, I'll bring her along. I'm assuming he'll want to take her with him after the appointment. Be sure to let them know that she's being hunted by a senior Red Court member so they can make arrangements for her and their safety." I wondered where they'd be taking her but I was certain that they were better equipped to deal with her, 'special needs' than I was.

"I'll pass that along. Good bye."

"Thanks." I said as I hung up the phone.

"So boss, it sounds like you have another appointment?" Molly asked looking at me with sleepy eyes. Her hair falling in her face as she propped herself on her elbow made her look like a little girl in her mom's night gown, except it fit too well.

"Yeah it's at McAnally's at ten this morning. The Fellowship of St. Giles is sending a representative."

"So you're going to hand her over to them just like that?" Molly frowned.

"That's the plan, unless you have a better idea, grasshopper. We aren't exactly overrun with options at this point."

"I know, I just can't believe that being wizards we can't do anything to help her."

"We are doing something to help her. The only other option would be to take her head, and once we put down the guy that attacked her we'll be doing a lot to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else." I yawned and stretched. "That's all we can do. Trust me I've tried finding other options for Susan and if there was one, I can't find it."

"I know. I'm sorry Harry."

I went in to check on Lash. As I opened the door she lifted her head and whispered, "Harry?"

"Yeah, it's me Lash. How are you feeling?"

"Better but a little dizzy." Lash gave me a tired smile as she pushed herself up to a sitting position.

"Did you sleep in the living room?"

"Yeah, Molly took the couch and I took the floor." I smiled at her.

"You should have waked me." She frowned.

"I didn't have the heart, you looked so comfortable." I said.

"Still, I hate sleeping alone and the floor is really not that comfortable."

"I'll be sure to wake you next time." I smiled at her.

"mmm, you better." She purred at me.

"Well, we have a house guest. A half vampire named Megan. I've arranged for her to meet with a representative of the Fellowship of St. Giles today. I'm taking her to McAnally's pub at ten this morning."

"Okay, I we can grab an early lunch there." Lash pulled the covers back and started to get up then swooned. I put my hand on her back to steady her.

"Maybe you should sit this one out. It's just a meeting and she should be leaving with him." I said, leaning her back on the bed.

"I hate being in bed during the day…" She frowned.

"Give it another day or so. You need let your body balance itself out and you're not going to do that running around town." I said in a fatherly voice, surprising myself.

"Harry, I'll be fine. Just let me get up and shower and we'll see how I feel from there." Lash said determined.

Lash was a beautiful, feminine, sexy woman and smarter than most wizards on the high council, but she was at least as pig-headed as yours truly, if not more so. Once she had her mind made up, arguing with her was an exercise in futility, unless you could prove her wrong, which I usually couldn't.

"Fine but if you're still dizzy you go back to bed?"

"Deal!" she grinned at me as she stood slowly.

"Now give a girl her privacy." She smiled at me as she headed for the bathroom.

"Oh, right!" I grabbed Mouse and we headed out of the room, closing the door behind us.

As I came into the living room I noticed that one of the candles of my early warning system was burning as a bright pinpoint of light. This particular candle meant that something bad was with in about half of a mile of my house. I pointed this out to Molly and we watched it for a few minutes before it returned to normal. Whatever it was left the boundaries of my wards and didn't get any closer.

"What do you think it was boss?" Molly asked.

"No idea, but it was something that was nasty enough to set off my wards, either it was just passing by or it noticed my detection ward and backed off. Either way it's gone now." I said heading to the kitchen to start breakfast.

Once I had the fire burning in the stove Molly chased me out of the kitchen so I went down stairs to wake Megan. I dropped the wards and the circle and placed my hand over her eyes and used my will to break the sleep spell I had placed on her.

"Megan, it's time to wake up." I said.

Megan's eyes fluttered in the dim light. She looked confused for a few moments as the reality of where she was and what had happened to her settled in. She frowned and sat up. Her hair was sticking out in every direction and she had sleep in her eyes as she looked around the room still waking up.

"How long have I been out?"

"About eight hours."

"Wow, I really slept well. You should find a way to package that spell, you'd make a fortune." Megan smiled at me.

"We have a meeting in a few hours. You should get cleaned up before we go. My girlfriend is in the shower right now but you can have it next."

"Yeah, I suppose I should." Megan tussled with her hair and then gave up. I helped her to her feet and we went up into the living room. I closed the trap door and pulled the rug over it. Megan headed for the kitchen mumbling something about juice as I went to the living room and poked the fire and adding a log.

Megan returned to the living room with an orange while Molly worked on breakfast.

"So, how's this going to work?" Megan said staring at her orange as she pulled a section free and slid it into her mouth.

"Most likely we'll go and meet with the representative from St. Giles and you'll go with him." I looked at Megan understanding I had just told her that the life she knew was officially over.

"What happens next?" she asked her orange.

"I'm not really sure, to be honest. We work with the Fellowship of St. Giles and know that they are honorable people, but I really don't know the inner workings of their organization. "I thought about that for a moment. Suzan had never told me what happened after she joined the fellowship except to say it's a very secretive operation and that was for their safety.

"So you drop me off and that's it? You're done with me and I'm somebody else's problem?" She frowned at her orange and then continued. "I don't blame you. I suppose I'd do the same thing if the situation were different."

"I'm not going to kid you. We probably won't see each other again. However, I want you to know that if you need anything or are in trouble I'm in the book. Also I have a friend who has the same condition as you so I know there is hope for a better life." I gave her a weak smile.

"Megan, did you want any coffee or anything?" Molly asked from the kitchen.

"No, I'm fine, thanks." Megan said over her shoulder.

"Who's your new friend Harry?" Lash came out of the bedroom looking refreshed and dare I say it radiant. She wore flattering straight leg jeans and tennis shoes with knit sweater, her hair cascading down over her shoulders in a damp golden waterfall.

"Megan, this is Lash, Lash this is Megan." I said introducing the two.

"Nice to meet you." Megan gave Lash a weak smile.

"Likewise, I hear you're in a bit of trouble." Lash gave Megan a kind smile.

"You could say that." Megan said with a frown. "We were just talking about what is to become of me."

"The Fellowship of St. Giles is a good organization, they will treat you well. They will also train you on how to survive your condition and how to do maximum damage on those who infected you. Either directly or indirectly, they make things hard for the vampires both with physical confrontation as well as fighting their legitimate interests both in the courts and in the market. I'm sure they can find a place that suites your strengths." Lash said with a smile.

"So I'm not necessarily going to become a foot soldier?" Megan said showing hope for the first time in days.

"That's always an option if you like, but they are always looking for smart people to help them in their fight against the red courts legitimate corporations and other interests in a less violent capacity." Lash told her with a slight smile.

"Hmmm I was thinking of going into business law to fight oppressive corporations. You don't get much more oppressive than literally sucking the lifeblood from your workers and customers." Megan said rising her eyebrows.

"Maybe you will get a chance to put a dent in their operations then. It would seem more of an arena you'd be well suited for." Lash said, giving me a knowing smile.

Leave it to Lash, sick and everything to turn the whole situation around to a positive. I gave her an impressed smile.

"What's that on your hand?" Lash asked surprised.

"It happened when the sun hit it." Megan said weakly.

"How long was it after you were bitten?" Lash said with a slight scowl.

"It was the next day." Megan frowned.

"I see. I've heard of that happening, but it's rare. It must have happened while the infection was first taking hold. You should be fine in the sun by now. Normally you don't see light sensitivity until after a red court vampire turns fully." Lash said looking at Megan.

With that Lash sat next to me and gave me a hug and kissed my cheek beaming up at me. "So when do we leave?"

While Lash, Molly and I ate, Megan got cleaned up. She borrowed some clothes from Molly and did the best she could with her hair with no curling iron, hair dryer or electricity for that matter.

Soon it was time to go. Molly decided it was time for her to make an appearance at home and get a proper warm bath and nap in a soft bed.

It was a nice day out and because there was no way that two girls and a two hundred pound dog would fit in the back seat, we decided to take the truck. It was a 57 Ford F100 pickup with custom everything, my brother had gotten it for me as a birthday present. However when my car ended up unexpectedly sidelined and I was in desperate need of transportation, Thomas gave me the truck early. Recently he had scheduled maintenance for it with Mike, my mechanical miracle worker. I had expected a tune up and oil change, which I got, but he also added a two thousand pound wench to the front of the truck. The new addition made the grill look like a face with a fat lip, but still it was cool.

We all squeezed into the cab of the truck, except for Mouse who was more than happy to ride in the bed of the truck. I ran a leather strap across the back of the bed, after closing the tailgate. Then I hooked his leash to the strap so he had free movement around the bed of the truck, but couldn't jump out. I wasn't afraid that Mouse would do anything rash as he was smarter than a lot of people I know, but it made the city officials and other drivers feel safer.

We drove through the late rush hour traffic and dropped Molly off at her parents' house. Charity was just getting the kids off to school and walked over to check on Lash. Although she assured Charity she felt fine I still got the stink eye for letting her out of bed. After a short and fairly pleasant conversation we rumbled back out into the streets of Chicago.

We made it to McAnally's Pub right on time. Although it was before his normal business hours the front door was unlocked. I led the group down the stairs and into the bar where Mac was setting out the condiments and napkins on the bar.

I gave Mac a wave and he pulled his thumb towards a table in the back. Mouse made himself comfortable at the front door as we walked to table.

At the table were two men, one was dressed in a business suit with dark hair and glasses. The other was in jeans and a t-shirt with a heavy leather jacket that had unnatural bulges in various spots.

"Harry Dresden?" the man in the dark gray suit asked.

"Yes, and you are?"

"I'm Mr. Sparks. I see you brought friends." He looked at Lash and then Megan.

"This is Lash, she's a wizard and personal friend. This is Megan, the woman I wanted to speak to you about." I said.

As we sat at the table I had an uneasy feeling. I wasn't sure if it was just nerves or something more, but my gut told me to stay on my toes.

Once seated he gave the designated sign and I gave the proper counter sign as given by the White Council to ensure that we were indeed the two that were scheduled to meet and I relaxed a little.

"Megan was bitten by a Red Court Vampire a few days ago." I glanced at Megan who had her hands folded over her chest and looked more than a little nervous.

"Are you sure she's infected?"

"Yes." Megan interjected firmly. "I'm definitely infected and I want to either get rid of this or learn to deal with it." She said vehemently.

"Well then, I think we can offer you assistance, miss." Mr. Sparks pulled a black kit from a briefcase that was at his side. "First we will need to verify your condition for our records. We have unfortunately had imposters and actual full vampires try to infiltrate our ranks in the past. This is merely a precaution."

The man opened the case to reveal a syringe and sample tubes. He proceeded to take two samples of Megan's blood. One went into the sample vial the other into another vial with a greenish liquid. When he injected a small amount of blood into the vial it turned dark blue. He showed the tube to the man next to him who simply nodded.

Mr. Sparks put both vials and the syringe into his pack and put it away.

"l think that will do. Did you have any belongings you wanted to bring with you?" Mr. Sparks looked at Megan blankly.

"I have some clothes in a motel room but otherwise no." Megan looked at Mr. Sparks and his companion curious. "That's it? We're just going to leave now?"

"Unless you have some unfinished business to deal with before we go. Also once we leave you'll have to cut all ties to your past life. You won't take or get any phone calls, emails, letters or visits from family or friends. This is for their protection as well as your own. Do you agree to these conditions?" Sparks asked pointedly.

"I get it. Mr. Wizard here already clued me in to that." She said scowling at the floor, jerking her thumb at me.

"Also, I think you should know the vampire that turned her was strong, very strong and he's hunting her. I'm not sure why but he had plans for her specifically so you need to watch your back." I said giving Mr. Sparks a meaningful long look.

"I assure you Wizard Dresden. We are prepared for that possibility." Mr. Sparks's friend said with a condescending look.

"When he came at me he had two others with him, I had no problems dispatching his friends as I have many others, but he was stronger and my magic was less effective against him. I cut his cohort in half and barely cut him. I'm telling you, he's not your run of the mill blood sucker." I said angry.

"We know of whom you are speaking, he's in line to become one of the priests of outer night. This was a power play on his part to gain favor by taking a high profile target from under your nose." Sparks piped up. "We knew there was a plan in the works but couldn't get any specifics. Now we know and we have prepared for this contingency. We've had dealings with his kind before Wizard. We know how to handle ourselves."

"Fine, you're the experts." I said leaning back in my chair, giving Lash a weary look. Lash gave skeptical smile. "Still, just in case, here's my card. Call me if you need anything or anything unexpected happens." I handed Mr. Sparks my card, he took it reluctantly and slid it into his breast pocket with a nod. I handed one to Megan as well with a handful of change.

"We will take it from here Wizard Dresden." Mr. Sparks said with a businesslike smile that made me think of a snake oil salesman. I wanted to hit the guy. He was so smug and self-assured. At the same time I knew that he had probably dealt with at least as many vampires as I had and probably knew them and their weaknesses better than I did. He was the expert doing what I had asked him to do, but still something felt off. Something turned in the pit of my stomach but I had nothing to base a protest on, no facts or information, just a gut feeling.

"If there's nothing else, we should be off Miss Forthright." Mr. Sparks said with a nod to his henchman.

I stood and turned to Megan. I stepped up close and pulled her into me giving her a hug. I dropped my head and whispered into her ear.

"If anything goes hinkey, get away fast and get someplace public and call me."

"I will. Thank you Harry." She whispered back and kissed my cheek then pulled away with a frightened smile.

"Thank you for your help and everything." Meagan said looking between Lash and I.

"Good luck Megan." Lash smiled at her and brushed her hair from her face. "You're going to be fine."

Mr. Sparks and his henchman stepped up to flank Megan and Mr. Sparks took her arm in one hand and his briefcase in the other and led her to the front door of McAnally's. Mouse looked up and gave Megan a sorrowful look as she passed by and then they left.

Lash and I walked over to the bar and Mac had two of his ales already opened and on the bar for us.

"Something doesn't feel right." I told my ale.

"Harry, there's nothing more that you could have done. She's with the Fellowship and they will take care of her." Lash smiled gently at me.

"Do you really believe that? That I did everything I could?" I smirked.

"Harry, you can't save the world. Something horrible happened to her and you made sure it didn't turn into a death sentence for her. I can honestly say you did everything you possibly could for her." Lash put an arm around my shoulder and then sipped from her bottle. Her eyes lit up and her mouth curled into a surprised smile.

"Winter wheat and Barley hops?" Lash beamed at Mac.

"Malt and barley hops." Mac said with a surprised look on his face, which for Mac passes for cartwheels.

We finished our drinks and thanked Mac for coming in early and headed out. We rolled through Chicago getting stares as the truck thundered through intersections and down the city streets.

We decided to go to Lake Front Park and enjoy the nice morning. We ended up staying until nearly dusk playing with Mouse and walking the beach, just talking. Lash had her medication in her bag and I asked her every hour if she needed to take something both out of concern and to tease her.

We left an hour before sunset as we were both starving and it took us another hour in traffic to make it back to my apartment. Twilight was still lingering in the early evening sky as we pulled into my parking area. As we went down the stairs, in the landing there were two boxes big enough to hold bowling balls and they were addressed to me.

I leaned down and sliced one open with my pocket knife and pulled the flaps back and inside, staring up at me was the head of Mr. Sparks and a note taped to his forehead said, "Nice try!".


	6. How to get a head or two

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 6

We left the bloody boxes on the stoop and went inside. Lash locked up and enabled the wards while I called Murphy. She answered on the second ring.

"Sergeant Murphy." Her voice was all business over the crackling on the line.

"Murphy, its Harry, we've got a problem. How soon can you be here?" I asked.

"Harry, what happened?" Murphy asked quietly into the receiver.

"Not over the phone, you'll want to bring some black and whites with you. My stoop has become a crime scene while I was out. Murph, you may want to come alone at first." I finished.

"Understood, I'll be there shortly." The line went dead.

"She's on her way." I told Lash over my shoulder.

Lash stood against the sink after taking her pills, looking weak and pale. I moved to her side in the blink of an eye and Mouse was by my side as I entered the kitchen.

"Lash, are you okay?" I said quietly, putting an arm around her to hold her up.

"I'm fine Harry. I've seen hundreds of dead people before, but for some reason, this time… It's really bothering me." Lash's eyes welled with tears as she forced herself to stand straight.

"It's because your mortal now Lash. The smell and sight of death is overpowering when you are subject to it. It's never easy, but you sort of get used to it eventually." I mumbled.

"You do?" Lash asked quietly, turning her face to me, wet lines marking her cheeks.

"Don't worry, it's perfectly normal. It's that fear and reaction that either freezes you or moves you to action to keep you alive. You're a fighter and stronger than most, you'll be fine." I said pulling her head to my chest hugging her tight.

We walked to the living room and sat down, Mouse at our feet, his big head resting on Lash's lap eliciting scratches and pets from her nervous hands.

"So what are you thinking, Harry?" Lash's voice was quiet but steady.

"I'm going to save the girl, vanquish the bad guy and then go to Mac's for a steak sandwich, so pretty much the same old thing." I said smirking.

"Sounds like fun, can I go too?" Lash said with a wry smile.

"Well I could always use the company, if you're up to it."

"Just so long as we don't stay out too late, you know how I get cranky if I don't get my beauty sleep." Lash grinned.

"If it gets too late you can nap in the truck."

"That works."

We sat for a few long moments petting Mouse and just enjoying the quiet. Finally Lash looked at me, her eyes wide with excitement.

"I know how you can find her!" Lash said rising from the sofa and hurrying into the bedroom.

She returned with a short white piece of shoe lace.

"She left this in our room when she was getting dressed. At least I think it was her, it's not mine."

"It could be Molly's." I said.

"Molly doesn't have white shoe laces, usually purple or orange if I remember properly." Lash grinned.

It was true. Molly wasn't one for standard colors. That went for her nails, hair, clothes and I didn't want to speculate about her under garments, but if what she helped to pick out for Lash was any indication, white cotton was a rarity.

"That should work, I think were in business!" I said bringing my mind back to the situation at hand.

It didn't take long for Murphy to arrive. After filling her in on what had happened she scowled and shook her head. "So how do I explain this to the chief? Obviously you knew these men, why would their heads show up on your door step?"

"Actually the vampires wanted to let me know they have the girl and I failed. It's their way of mooning me as they take off. As far as the chief needs to know, they were friends of mine and someone like Marcone decided to send me a message?"

"Do you want to explain your relationship to Marcone to the chief? I don't think you could spin it so that they would allow you to continue to work for the CPD even as a consultant if you have ties to him." Murphy grimaced.

"Okay, maybe they were delivered to the wrong house then."

"Nobody's going to believe that either Harry. I think the best cover story is they are contacts of yours and someone is trying to get you off the case. That will give you a reason to stay on the case and it's not a lie." Murphy postulated.

"I don't care what you tell them, I think I may have a way to track Megan and the sooner I can get this show over with and get to my tracking spell the better."

"I understand. Just let your wards down so you don't fry my men when they arrive. That wouldn't go over too well." Murphy warned.

"Ya, no problem Murph."

"Harry?"

"I know what you're going to ask and the best I can guess is they had vanilla human mercenaries grab the girl and deliver the heads to taunt me. My wards didn't go off because they didn't try to enter my house, just left boxes like the UPS guy." I answered her unasked question.

"I guessed that much but where are the bodies? Maybe if we knew where they were grabbed it could tell us something about who took them. If we can grab one of the mercenary's then maybe they'll tell us where they dropped the girl off. Since the sun's only been down a few hours they can't have that big of a head start on us if they've left, if not we may find where they are." Murphy said in typical investigator style.

I thought about what she had said and it wasn't a bad idea. This way while I went looking for the girl Murphy and the cops could track down the execution detail and maybe keep them out of my hair.

I pulled a hair from each body and headed down stairs. Since I was only going to use the model as a map and not try to actually enter it, I didn't need to go through the ritual cleansing as I would if I wanted to see the area remotely.

I tied one hair to my crystal and stepped into my multicolored circle of brass, sliver and other metals braided into a continuous loop. I closed the circle and cast my tracking spell focusing on the decapitated body of the dead man. I pushed my will and power into the image and pushed it into the crystal and bound it with the hair. I held the binding in place as I mumbled the words to the tracking spell and broke the circle, feeling the rush of power over my skin as the spell went to work.

I was able to get a fix on the body and called Murphy down. Lash and Murphy stood on either side of me as the crystal pulled towards the docks. I moved the crystal until it swung between two old buildings near the passenger terminal at the port. It seems they were taking Megan to Canada and I assumed that an organization with their resources would have a private boat they would ferry her privately to the final destination.

Murphy took notes and scratched a crude map into her notebook and gave me a quick thank you as a knock came from upstairs.

"That's my cue." Murphy said as she closed and pushed her notebook into her coat pocket and headed up the rickety stairs to my apartment. Lash and I quickly followed closing the door and covering it with the usual rugs. I didn't need anyone poking through my ingredients or work room as a lot of it was dangerous and some of it illegal and I had neither the time nor patience to explain why I had it. Hell they wouldn't believe me if I told them the truth.

Through the cracked door I heard Murphy giving orders and having them close the area as a crime scene.

I walked over and opened the door to see a couple of grim faced uniformed police men starting to tape off the area.

"Hey guys, could you leave me a small path to get out of my house so I don't have to cross the crime scene tape to get to my car?" I asked in my most polite voice.

The closest one gave me a skeptical look, "You probably won't be going anywhere for a while Mr. Dresden, I'm sure the homicide investigators will want to have a long conversation with you about this." He smirked pulling the tape and attaching it to one of the hand rails leading down to my apartment.

"Don't be an ass, he has a point unless you want to explain to forensics why everyone's been stomping through the crime scene. Put up some plastic to keep debris from blowing down the stairs or from the walk way while you're at it." Murphy barked at the plain clothes officer, turning his face an interesting shade of crimson.

"Whatever you say, sergeant." He replied without looking at Murphy, accenting the last word contemptuously. Murphy scowled and let it go. She'd make sure he had a long night for that remark.

After the area was secured, the young officer was sent on the first of many errands. To my delight he returned with coffee and donuts and then was sent to canvas the building next door to see if anyone had seen anything. The building across the street wasn't the nicest building on the block and since the rent was cheap, it tended to attract a less than desirable element. His partner was sent with him, just in case. Who knows, maybe they'll get some information or find someone who jumped bail, I thought to myself as he walked rigidly across the street while Murphy headed up to my land lady's apartment to start asking questions of her own.

My land lady is an elderly lady who thinks I'm a nice, albeit strange tenant. But I pay rent on time, usually, and help with yard maintenance and take her trash out when I can. Molly had taken to helping her with her shopping and even played cards with her over tea on a few occasions. I hated that I had brought such gruesome trouble to her building once again, but it couldn't be helped. Trouble seems to have a way of finding me.

Lash and I had cemented our story while they taped off the landing. Eventually the suits showed up glanced around and headed inside to talk to me and Lash. I hadn't met these detectives before, which considering the many times I've had to talk to homicide in my career made it seem odd. The two of them looked like Laurel and Hardy when they walked in. A portly man in his late forties maybe five foot eight with lifts and jet black hair with a permanent scowl came to talk to me. Lash was taken into the bedroom by a tall thin woman, maybe mid to late thirties. She had red hair and a thin build. I'm guessing she could have been a model in her younger years but she carried herself with poise and confidence and the large bulge under her designer jacket spoke to a large caliber hand gun not well concealed.

"So you're the infamous Harry Dresden." He said as he dropped onto my couch causing the old piece of furniture to groan under the stress. "I'm detective Schwartz. I wondered when I'd get a chance to meet you."

"Well here I am, in the flesh. I suppose you've heard that there's no love lost between myself and detective Greene." I snorted.

"I got that impression, yeah." He chortled. "I don't know what you did but you really got under his skin."

"He was getting pushy with my friends daughter a few years back when she was just a teen, I convinced him to back off. I guess he didn't like having his authority questioned or being out maneuvered by a nut job." I said rising off the couch. "I'm going to grab a coke, would you like one?"

"I'm on duty, thanks but no." he mumbled watching me go to the ice box and grab a can.

"So what's the deal here, did the electricity not get run to this apartment or is it for ambiance?" He asked waving to the candles and wood stove.

"Let's just say I'm not big on modern conveniences." I said walking to my overstuffed chair.

"Modern conveniences huh, you could at least get a lamp down here." He said squinting at his notebook. "The whole wizard thing is a good hook but you're going to ruin your eye sight without proper lighting. It's a lot of trouble to go to for a gag." He said looking up at me.

He didn't seem to mean anything by what he said and actually seemed to be good natured enough, most police only believe what they can see and catalog as evidence. Something like a psychic or wizard where the powers are unseen and hard to prove brings out the natural skeptic that is in every good cop's makeup. Since they are lied to by most everyone they talk to it's not only a defense mechanism but a survival trait. They look for flaws and inconsistencies in what their told since most of the time their given bull to begin with and most criminals aren't the brightest bulbs in the box skepticism and sticking to the facts is not only how to build a strong case but also a well honed talent.

A few years ago I would have probably cast a light spell over his head just to prove I'm not a quack but I didn't want this to take long and something like that would cause more questions than letting him think It being a wizard is a gimmick to get business. So I just smiled and shook my head in agreement.

"So how can I help you detective Schwartz?" I said in my best polite voice, hoping to move things along.

"Well you can start by telling me who those two heads belong to." He said, pencil poised above his note book.

"The older one is Mr. Sparks, I never got the other guys name. I met them today and asked them to poke around regarding the disappearance of Miss Forthright. I can only guess they found something out that they weren't supposed to and this is a warning to me to back off." I said mentally kicking myself for letting Megan go anywhere with those two.

"Did they tell you anything about who they were going to talk to or give you any information on any leads they may have had?" He asked as he scribbled in his note book.

"No, they just said they'd look into it for me."

"Now let me get this strait, you're a PI and a wizard but you go to these two to do your snooping? Couldn't you have done it yourself or maybe cast a spell to get the information you needed?" He asked with a bit of a scowl on his face. I could tell his Bull meter was nearing the red line.

"You're a detective, you know how this works. There are some places you can't go into without drawing too much attention and people who know who you are won't talk to you. So you use snitches and people who move in those circles to poke around until you have enough information to go in yourself." I replied evenly.

"You're telling me these two moved in nefarious circles?" He asked writing again.

"Let's say they know people I don't and might get a different perspective on things than I would." I told him.

"From what I've heard you've had a run in or two with John Marcone, I get the impression you two aren't friends. Yet he has gone to great lengths to make it known that you two have a relationship. Do you think he may be the one sending you a message?" He asked.

"Let's say I've been a pain in his side on more than one occasion. This is not his style. When Marcone wants to send me a message it usually entails explosives or a visit from his pet gorilla or other friends. He's more hands on then this. My guess is it's someone from out of town." I said scratching my chin.

"So you do know him then, Marcone?" The portly detective asked looking at me studying my face.

"It's hard to be an investigator without running into something he doesn't have his fingers in. I'm sure you've had leads to his organization more than once." I said looking him in the jaw.

"I'll agree it's not like him to leave a body lying around but it's also not like him to snatch a kid. If it is someone from out of town working in his back yard I don't think he's going to like that too much." The detective said noticing I wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Probably not, maybe you should go have a chat with him, he may have more information on this than I do." I said looking squarely at the tip of his nose to avoid a soulgaze.

"So you're hypothesis is that someone from out of town pulled the kidnapping and these two got too close and got dead for their troubles. Then the person or persons unknown cut off their heads and dropped them on your door step to get you to back off. Is that about it?" He asked.

"You're the detective, I'm just a PI, but that's my take on it, yes."

"Okay, right off the bat, here's my problem with your story. First off, if it's a group from out of town how did they know where you lived or that these two were working with you? There's no sign of torture on the faces, not even a split lip, so how did they know to deliver the heads to you?"

"Maybe they were watching them or me?" I offered.

"How would they know to watch you, I mean you're not well known outside the police department except for the time you appeared on The Larry Fowler Show and failed to do any magic. I bet that didn't help bring in any new cases did it? John Marcone on the other hand knows right where you live and you have a history with him. He'd know to watch you for this sort of investigation and he knows where to find you. All things being equal doesn't it make more sense that you and Marcone worked out this kidnapping and when he saw you working with Murphy decided to send you a message to shut up and sent your henchmen's heads to you as a warning? They were probably the two that grabbed the kid and this way he shuts them and you up at the same time."

"Okay, then answer me this. If like you said I'm in league with the biggest scumbag ever to dirty our city, why would I call the cops when two heads fall on my door step instead of putting them in a hefty bag and ditching them behind a convenience store across town and keep my mouth shut? If this is a message wouldn't I be stupid to call the cops? I could either shut up or go after him myself and let's face it if John Marcone ended up dead would the police really take much time to look into it? A mob boss ends up dead, who'd of thunk it? You'd take notes and pictures and assume it was one of the thousands of people who he's pissed off in the past that got some pay back or one of his lieutenants making a career move. Why would I involve you?" I said a little louder than I intended, I could feel my face getting hot as I finished.

"So you're telling me that you could take down John Marcone? Do you know him that well?" He asked evenly, knowing he had pushed a button.

"He's a scumbag and a criminal, what else do I need to know. We aren't buddies if that's what you're getting at. As for taking him down, I wouldn't know, but if someone was trying to double cross and kill me I wouldn't simply sit idly by while the CPD looked into it." I finished.

"No I believe you wouldn't." he said simply. "Don't leave town and I'll need you to be available in case I have more questions."

"Yeah, I know the drill. How long will my front door be a crime scene?" I asked.

"A day maybe two, we'll get the heads out of here and over to the forensics team in an hour or so, but try to stay out of the marked area until we take the tape down. Also here's my card, call me if you think of anything else." He said dropping a business card on my coffee table. He walked over to the bedroom door and knocked twice then opened the door. "I'm done here, you about ready?"

Detective Schwartz turned and his companion emerged from my bedroom with a slightly dazed look on her face. "I'm done too." She said in a dreamy voice walking past Schwartz and heading for the door.

Lash emerged a few moments later looking a little shy and lingering near the doorway.

Schwartz hurried to follow his companion out the door and to their car. The detectives left quickly, leaving the uniforms and lab guys poking around my doorway.

I went to close the door and Murphy waved at me to wait. She stepped inside and closed the door behind her.

"Can you sound proof the living room?" she asked.

"Sure that's a simple spell." Lash said and waved her hands and mumbled a few guttural words and I could feel power spread throughout the room. "All done!" she said with a satisfied look on her face.

"How'd it go?" Murphy asked me.

"Well the fat guy thinks Marcone and I orchestrated the kidnapping and the heads belong to the henchmen who grabbed her. I tried to shoot holes in his theory but I don't think he believed me."

"How did it go for you?" Murphy asked Lash.

"Well at first she was nice then she started throwing accusations around and accused me of lying so I helped her calm down and it went really well from there." Lash said with a sheepish look on her face.

"What do you mean you helped her calm down?" I asked not sure if I wanted to know the answer.

"I didn't break any of the laws of magic if that's what you're worried about. I simply suggested that she listen and I would tell her the truth and she'd believe me." Lash said.

"Suggested how?" I asked.

"Well you could say it was subconscious, but I didn't enter her mind and I didn't enthrall her." Lash said.

"You can do that?" Murphy asked me.

"I can't but Lash and Molly are better at the subtle magic's than I am. Yes you can plant a suggestion in someone's mind without tampering with it." I said. "It's not something I'd try but it's this side of the gray line of the law of magic. She sets the mood and suggests to the target something that isn't out of their character and isn't against their will, like the Jedi mind trick. Now if she had forced her way into the detectives mind and planted it or had forced the detective to believe or do something it would be a different story. Still it's not the sort of thing you want to make a habit of doing lest the council get suspicious." I told Murphy. I wasn't happy she had resorted to that but it seemed to work for now and it got them out of my house.

"You hypnotized the detective?" Murphy said incredulously. "You can't do that! What happens when it wears off or if they compare notes? She looked a little loopy when they left, do you honestly think her partner won't think there's something up?" Murphy said.

"Hey she was getting to be a real pain and was trying to make me angry. I could have simply blasted her through the wall or opened a portal to the ways and pushed her in but I played nice." Lash said getting a little red faced.

"All things considered, I'm glad you kept your cool. However, we're going to have to have a long talk about how to deal with police in the future." Murphy said to Lash with a wry smile on her face.

"If you think it's necessary…" Lash said simply.

"I've got work to do. Can you keep them out of the house for a while so I can do my thing Murph?" I asked pulling the shoe lace from my pocket.

"Sure, no problem let me know when you're done." Murphy said and headed for the door.

Lash released her spell and followed me into the bedroom.

"Harry, wait a second." Lash said as I headed for the bathroom.

"What's wrong?" I asked seeing her look very serious.

"Well, the officer I spoke to asked about your relationship with Marcone. I know that you and he have a strained truce at best, but isn't he a signatory of the Unseelie Accords?" Lash asked.

"Well yes, why?"

"Well it does seem odd that the red court would move into his territory and run an operation like this without his knowledge." She said.

"Well the White court is a signatory as well and they had no information on this. Any way John Marcone may be the biggest scum bag in the world but even he wouldn't sign off on a young girl getting hurt." I said simply.

"If you say so Harry." She said giving me an unsure smile.

I went ahead with my ritual washing and meditation and when I was ready I headed down stairs. I bound the shoe lace to the shoe and the shoe to the girl and girl to the crystal then the crystal to the model of little Chicago. I pushed power into the image and intentions of what I wanted and cast the tracking spell then broke the circle loosing the energy to do my bidding.

I started near the docks where the bodies were supposed to be and got tugs leading the crystal to an area of the Gold Coast a few miles from where the White Court's palatial estate sat. Since I hadn't taken samples of every house in the gold coast due to security concerns I didn't have a model of the grounds or house at this location. That meant I couldn't search inside with any surety of success. Instead I pushed my will into the model and stood on the street outside the large gated estate. They had a gate house equipped with a guard with an automatic rifle leaning against the wall just out of sight and there was a faint line just outside the wall. It shimmered red and glowed in the models ghost like environment. It was a ward of some sort and if I could see it here I could trip it her too. I decided against it. Instead I stood on the street looking at the large iron gate that blocked the drive way and memorized the address. As I stood there looking at the gate somewhere in the void that was the representation of the estate I saw a gold shimmering light that told me Megan was there.


	7. The lady and the monster

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 7

_AN: Sorry it took so long to get back to the story line but real life has been rearing its ugly head and I had some things I needed to get sorted before I could get back to writing. Thanks for hanging in there with me, the stage is being set._

The bed was soft and warm as she felt her aching body sink luxuriously into the down mattress and the weight of the comforter softly pressing against her body. She moved her head and every nerve and blood vessel in her head complained loudly in a cacophony of pain and aches. Her head hurt a lot but her forehead hurt the most, as if she had been hit with a brick. Her eyes slowly came into focus as she opened her eyes to take in the dimly let room, immaculately adorned with expensive furniture and expensive heavy drapes over what she assumed to be the windows. A telltale glow of amber on the wall around the curtains hinted at daylight, which was thankfully not shining in her eyes as the dim candle light was already more than she could stand.

"Tell master his charge is awake." A female voice said in a soft yet commanding voice. Her quiet voice carried the assurance of absolute authority as she spoke to another unseen presence in the room. Megan heard the door open and the room briefly became slightly brighter causing her to clench her eyes shut until the door quietly latched shut.

"There there my dear, you are safe now. Just rest for a bit, the effects will wear off shortly I assure you." The matronly voice came closer and a cool, damp cloth was laid across her forehead. It wasn't immediate relief but it did help to dull the pain and gave her something else to focus on.

"Where am I?" Megan said quietly, yet the sound of her voice in her own head made the room spin.

"You are safe my dear. You are in the master's home, nothing can touch you here." The voice at her side was soothing and quiet. The absolute finality in her voice was reassuring. Megan felt a hand under her head gently lifting her as the pillow was moved to prop her up so she could see more. The woman appeared to be in her late forties with wisps of gray at her temples flowing through her coal black hair that was pulled back into a pony tail that hung to the center of her back. Her face was flat and a little on the plump side, her skin was deeply tanned but her brown eyes showed neither compassion nor mercy. Megan had seen this look before in others when she had volunteered for a week at the veteran hospital. She had seen death and horrors that nobody should be subjected to and they had scarred her soul, the happiness or joy that may have once gleamed in those eyes was dead and long forgotten.

"Drink this child." The woman said as she lifted a cup to Megan's lips. The liquid had a strong scent of herbs and a heady smell she couldn't quite place.

"What is this?" Megan asked pulling back from the cup.

"It is a remedy to help quiet the pain in your head and give you strength." She said moving the cup to Megan's lips and tilting it so the liquid just touched her lips. Megan reluctantly took a sip. She could taste mint, chamomile, nutmeg and other things she couldn't place in the strong tasting liquid. It didn't taste bad exactly, more odd, but it did warm her as she swallowed and she felt the warmth spread to her stomach and then out to the rest of her body. Her head seemed to hurt less as she drank and she felt stronger. Before she noticed the cup was empty.

"That's good child. It will help you feel better very soon. It's my own mixture, it doesn't taste too good but it does take the edge off a bad headache." The woman said turning to place the finely made cup on a matching china saucer.

"Why are you helping me? They plan to kill me you know." Megan said as the memories of the last few days poured into her head. At this the older woman chuckled and shook her head.

"My dear, the master was quite livid when you got away and then simply beside himself when you enlisted the wizard to help you. Had he found you sooner, you would probably be dead by now. However, the master has since decided that your resourcefulness and tenacity, albeit an annoyance for now, is one of your strongest assets and will serve you well in future endeavors." The woman met Megan's eyes and raised an eyebrow with a hint of a smile. "However, were I you my dear, I wouldn't test his patience any further. As you are not yet a full member of the red court, you have no guarantee of safety in this house. You would be wise to tread lightly."

"So are you… are you a member of the red court?" Megan asked her eyes wide, fear swirling in her stomach.

"No I am not my dear." The woman said with a surprised look on her face and a brief smirk crossed her face before becoming once again impassive. "Were I a member of the red court I assure you I would appear much younger and move without aches. I am simply a servant of the master as my mother was before me." She said.

"Why? Why do you do it? Why work for monsters that see you as cattle?" Megan asked incredulous.

"I assure the master does not feed on his house staff. He also does not tolerate insolence. If I were to try to leave, he would find me and I would pay a terrible price. There are things much worse than death child and the master has lived long enough to inflict them on those who insult or challenge him. I wouldn't dare incur his wrath. That and the master can be quite kind and he is very protective of his people. I have no reason or desire to do anything else."

"But you're a slave! You have no choice in the matter." Megan began to protest.

"Child, I have seen those who toil in ditches, waiting tables, building buildings and even those in expensive clothes who have servants of their own. We are all slaves child. We all have a master to serve. If the worker quits his job he soon starves and his children go untended when sick, how is that different to my plight? Even the master serves the Red King and the King himself serves his subjects. So you see, in the grand scheme of things my lot, however small, is comfortable and safe. If the truth be told I have it better than most." The woman removed the cloth from Megan's head, dipped it in the basin on the night table next to her, wrung it out and placed it back on Megan's head.

"I suppose you have a point, but if you're happy, I guess that's all that really matters." Megan said feeling the pain drain away.

There was a single knock on the door and the servant got up and walked to the door and opened it a crack. Megan could hear the quiet murmur of voices but couldn't make out the words and then the woman closed the door and turned to Megan.

"The master wishes to see you. I will leave you to get dressed. I have laid out clothes you are to wear. I will be back shortly to take you to see him, so you need to get up." The woman said and then turned and slipped quietly through the door closing it quietly as she left.

Megan sat up and to her surprise she didn't swoon and her head didn't protest much. She got up and found herself in a flowing night gown of red silk. It was light, soft and caressed her skin with every movement. She moved to the foot of the bed and found garments laid out for her on a oak chest that ran across the foot of the bed and doubled as a bench seat. There were shoes, stockings, under garments and a long red and black gown waiting for her. In a neatly folded stack on the floor sat the clothes that Megan had worn to meet the men from St. Giles. They were dirty, ripped and spattered with dried blood.

Megan moved to the curtains and pulled them back to see the sun setting behind the trees that lined the estate. Megan was on the third or fourth floor, either way too far for her to jump and the window was set into the wall so they didn't open. Seeing no means of escape and not wanting to have to try to escape in a night gown so she quickly changed.

True to her word the woman returned shortly and sat Megan at the dressing table, handing her a makeup kit and then began to brush and arrange Megan's hair. The servant turned on the lights as Megan began to lay out the makeup on the table in front of her. The room was done in dark wood paneling and the carpets were the same dark red as her night gown. The furniture matched the paneling except for red velvet cushions.

It didn't take long for the two to get Megan beautiful and then they were heading for the door.

"I'm so sorry," Megan said stopping as they were just reaching the door to the room, "I never asked your name."

"You may call me Ashley." The servant said with a slight curtsey, then she put an arm behind Megan and began to usher her to the door. "We must not be late Miss Forthright. The master would not be pleased."

They went through what seemed to be a maze of endless hallways, stairs and corridors until they finally came to a large hallway ending in large ornately carved double doors. There were two large guards dressed in dark suits with jaguar sashes over their chests with silver claws holding the sashes in place at the shoulder. Megan and Ashley stopped about ten feet from the door.

"Miss Forthright, you must listen closely and do exactly as you are told, do you understand me?" Ashley said quietly but with the tone of absolute authority that made Megan feel like a small child.

"Yes." Megan whispered.

"When you go inside you are to take the open seat next to the master on the dais. You are to sit there quietly and only speak if spoken to and keep your answers brief and to the point. Also it would be best if you agreed with everything the master says, do not make him angry. If you do it will be at your own peril." Ashley said, then turned and motioned for Megan to go to the doorway.

As Megan neared the doors, the two men bowed slightly and then pulled the doors open for her. Inside the room was bright, the floors were of polished marble, the walls were done in gold and white, there were a number of chandeliers handing in rows of four to light the room and there was single stripe of red carpet leading from the doors to the dais in the middle of the room. On the Dias sat in a large seat of ivory and velvet, next to it was a smaller chair crafted similarly to the large one. The backs of the chairs were facing Megan but she could tell the large chair was occupied and there were women placed at even intervals around the dais.

The women wore short black sleeveless dresses. Their black hair and tanned skin almost glowed in the light of the room. Two of the women came to escort Megan to the smaller chair. As Megan came around the chair she could see that there were four men standing on a red carpet like the one she just came up, she tried not to look at the man in the large chair as she sat and folded her hands in her lap, her eyes glued to the shiny floor.

"Megan! My god, are you alright?" Megan's blood froze in her veins as the familiar voice rang in her head.

"Yes father, I'm fine." Megan replied evenly, never lifting her gaze. She had no idea what was going on or what she could possibly say to her father besides to assure him she was fine. She couldn't tell him she was infected with vampirism or that the powerful host who sat to her left was in fact a monster. For his own protection all she could do was make him believe that this is where she wanted to be. She had made up her mind to call him before leaving the country with the men from St. Giles but hadn't had the chance. Now here he was, in the lair of the monster that had ruined her life and she was so ashamed and worried that she couldn't bear to look at him.

"You see senator, it is as I told you. She is alive and well cared for." The master said smoothly in his deep voice. "She is such a delightful girl. I have greatly enjoyed her company these last few days. It is fortuitous that I came upon her when I did, there's no telling what might have happened to her otherwise." He finished.

"Megan, I'm so glad you're okay!" the senator said.

"Now it's as I told you, the girl has asked to stay with me for a while, until she can make more permanent arrangements. My men will give you the number here and you can see her as often as you like." The master gave Megan a glance with a wicked smile.

Megan could smell the sweat, fear and outrage coming from her father and she could hear the fast heartbeat in his chest. As his face turned crimson she could almost smell the blood in her father's cheeks and her body wanted to taste it. The hunger seemed to come from deep in her bones, the need to split his skin open and relish the warm dark liquid, to gorge herself on his blood and flesh. His assistant stank of anxiety and would be easy prey, his soft life, his soft skin, tender flesh would be intoxicating and Megan felt a hunger inside her as she had never felt before. It was base, carnal and instinctual. She wanted to stalk and slaughter her prey. She tried to fight the feeling but it was overwhelming her, it was all she could do to stay in her seat, her will alone holding her motionless.

The sound seemed to be far away, a faint whisper reaching her consciousness, "Bloodlust doesn't make any exception for families Miss Forthright. The hunger simply wants blood, anyone's blood." Her eyes scanned the floor before her, her father and his assistant seemingly frozen as her mind raced. More words rang in her head, "You've held it together this long, that's something… it's not just your life you'll be putting in danger."

Megan's eyes met her fathers, his familiar face and the same brown eyes she had stared back at her filled with worry, fear and a father's love. While she looked at him she thought to herself, "I won't let this thing inside me win, I'm not weak and I won't give in!" Rage and memories of her family rushed into her mind, drowning out the groaning, gnawing hunger. She felt her mind and heart beat the animal instincts and hunger back.

"Megan, answer the man." The master said in a stern voice, by the look on his face he knew she had come through her personal crisis and was again in control. He didn't look pleased.

"I'm sorry, what was the question?" Megan asked him with a forced, polite smile.

"Your father just asked if you really wanted to stay here or if you'd like to return to your home and family." The master replied politely, giving her the same smile the snake gave Eve.

Megan turned to her father and gave him a impassive look. "Father I wish to remain here."

"Megan, why?" He pleaded.

"Why? You ask why? If the servants didn't tell you I was missing would you have noticed?" Megan asked with a sharp edge of contempt to her voice. "I'm a woman father, an adult. I'm old enough to make my own decisions and I'm sick of being nothing more than a part of your media dog and pony show. I have an opportunity to be happy here and I intend to take it." Megan glanced at the master then back to her father and then fell silent as her gaze returned to the shiny marble floors.

"Megan, you know it's not like that. You're my daughter and I Love you, won't you please come home. You're mother is worried sick about you." He begged.

"You love me? When were you ever there for me? You're never home and if you hadn't noticed mother spends more time in a vodka bottle than she does shopping or socializing. I was raised by a nanny and she spent more time trying to find quiet moments to sneak off with you than she did caring for me. I can't go back to that life, I won't go back with you." Megan said strongly. Then with a resolve and finality she looked her father in the eyes, giving him a hard look, "I've made up my mind father. I expect you to respect my wishes."

"Megan, we can work this out sweetie…" Her father sobbed. His assistant put his hand on the senator's shoulder and shook his head.

"So you see senator, she is not being held here. It is her wish to stay and I will honor that." The master said with a snakelike grin on his face. Megan sat silently looking at the floor.

"Megan, is there nothing I can do or say to change your mind?" Her father asked gaining his composure?

Rising from her seat Megan moved down the stairs to stand in front of her father. The assistant moved a few steps back as she approached. The master watched intently wondering what wonderful bit of mischief she may be up to, having felt her hunger earlier and her anger a few moments ago, he could only imagine this would be worth watching.

"Father the only thing you can say to me that will show me you care, is goodbye." Megan said as she reached out to straighten her father's tie and smooth his jacket as she had so many times in the past. "Trust me father, this is for the best. I'll call you soon."

With that Megan simply turned and took her place on the dais.

The senator and his assistant simply watcher her walk away and take her place.

"I believe our business for now is done senator. You can call off the man hunt and know that your daughter is happy and well cared for." The master said in a reasonable tone with a hint of gloating mixed in as he smiled at his guests.

"This isn't over Mr. Belari. I'll have my daughter safe at home again." The senator spat, then turned on his heel and marched to the far side of the room, escorted by two of the masters house staff.

The large set of double doors at the far end of the room closed silently and the room fell silent.

"So you now understand that your place is by my side?" The master said quietly glancing at Megan.

"I know I can't go home, you've seen to that." Megan replied quietly.

"So I have. It was wise of you to send him away, but I'm afraid that isn't the last we'll hear from the good senator." The master said with a devilish smile.

"I don't know why you decided you wanted me but here I am. Leave my family out of this, you have what you want." Megan said boldly.

"Not quite, my dear. You are still part human and I can't have that. After all how would it look for me to be betrothed to a human, even if you are only half human? But that can be remedied easily enough." The master said

"Betrothed, you want to marry me?" Megan asked incredulously.

"After all you are of a royal blood line, one that even my kind recognizes. You will be very happy my child and I will make you a duchess. Even the other courts will have no choice but to honor your position and acknowledge you. You should be thankful that I found you first my dear." He said with a grin.

"You attack me and want me to become a monster to make me happy?" Megan spat.

"Watch your tone my dear, even my patience has its limits." The master said flashing an angry glare at Megan. "You are so young it's hard for me to remember being so naive, but once I was quite like you my dear. You don't understand what a great gift I am offering to you. Because of me, you will never know sickness, aging or death. You will live hundreds or thousands of lifetimes as these mortals would count them."

The master turned to face Megan looking into her eyes, "I am giving you an opportunity to live like a queen, to travel and see the world a thousand times over. To meet the most interesting people to walk the earth and watch this pathetic race known as humanity evolve. I myself have lived over seven hundred years and in that time I have seen humans change and grow, filling the world with their seed. We have guided them and helped them to make discoveries and achieve accomplishments that have made their growth possible." Leaning back in his chair, still facing Megan he continued.

"We were once revered as Gods by the mortals. They worshiped us and sacrificed their own to us in exchange for our secrets and protection. You see it was my people who instructed them in the creation of the pyramids you find all over the world. We gave them the secrets of agriculture and domestication. We helped them out of the caves and gave to them the world. You call us monsters but in fact we are humanity's benefactor and all we take in return is what we need to survive. There are yet secrets and wonders that you, my dear can hardly conceive of waiting for you. All you need to do to continue our work is to join us."

"You said I am of a Royal blood line, what did you mean by that?" Megan said quietly.

"The Egyptians had their Pharos and the English and French had their kings and so it was throughout the world for some time that a certain family was ordained to rule certain areas. It was not by accident that these families were selected. They may not have been the wisest or the most benevolent of the race but their blood was the purest containing traits that we found necessary to propagate. You my dear are of that blood line and your blood is the purest and strongest of all I have found in your family tree. It was no surprise for me that your father was an esteemed leader among men it's in his blood you see." The master leaned closer and spoke more quietly.

"Events have been put into motion that would benefit from one of your family line emerging into our family. You will have strength and knowledge beyond your years and being my wife will only enhance your position and authority among our kind. Together we will be in a position to bring about change and usher in a new era for humanity and our kind." The master gave Megan a long look as he fell silent.

"Why didn't you simply tell me all this to begin with? Why all these attacks and bloodshed?" Megan asked.

"Would you so simply have accepted my story a week ago? Would you believe all I told you? I didn't have the luxury of time to reason with you as others were seeking you. It seemed prudent to bring you into our world first as humans often must first see to believe and I didn't want to lose you to the black court. As for the deaths, you were the one who involved the wizard and men from St. Giles. I couldn't allow them to simply walk away with you. Their blood is on your hands child." The master gave Megan a slight smile and continued. "Do you see now my dear?"

"Why did you take the other hiker, Larry?" Megan asked quietly.

"He was at the wrong place at the wrong time and I didn't simply kill him because I thought having a companion to go through the changes with might be good for you. Unfortunately he was too weak to control his bloodlust and attacked the wizard. So although I regret his loss he was too weak and lowly to be a proper companion for you my dear." The master finished.

"What if I'm too weak? What if I can't control it?" Megan asked remembering the feeling of the hunger driving her, compelling her to do terrible things.

"You have proven already that you are stronger than most. The first night you could have and should have feasted and gorged yourself, but instead you held to reason and sanity and escaped us. Then in your father's house you could have simply slaughtered the servant but again you restrained yourself. Then just now, when your father was in front of you I felt the hunger inside of you, tearing at you fighting to force you to feed and again, you resisted. Once you turn, you will find that you will be better able to control yourself as you become stronger, it's part of who you are. Just know that the hunger will always be with you." He finished.

They sat in silence for some time, Megan's head was reeling with what she had been told and wondering what changes he intended to usher in for both their races. She was to be a duchess and wife to this powerful creature, a benefactor for mankind. This didn't fit with any of the movies she'd seen over the years, but then again why should it.

The master could see the thoughts pouring into her head and finally touched her arm. As Megan met his gaze he surprised her by giving her a kind smile. "You have a lot to think about my dear, why don't you rest for a while and then we can talk more, later."

"Thank you, sir." Megan said not sure what to call him.

"Most here call me Master but you may call me Antonio or Mr. Belari if we have company." He said.

"Thank you Mr. Belari." Megan said with a sheepish smile, her eyes admiring her shoes as she spoke.

"Ladies, will you please escort our guest to her room. Please be sure that her servant attends to her every need. Also please send in Mr. Feori, we have business to discuss." He said in a stately tone.

"Of course master." Two of the women said in perfect unison.

With that Megan turned and simply followed the two ladies back through the maze of halls and stairs eventually leading to her room. Once inside Megan sat on flawlessly made bed and kicked off her shoes as the reality of her situation began to sink in.

* * *

><p>Harry had his blasting rod secured under his duster and his staff in hand. He was going through his bag of magical equipment ensuring he had everything he thought he may need to go and get Megan back when the phone rang.<p>

"I got it." Lash said, sliding her wand and rod into loops on her belt. She wore black leather pants with a black leather belt clasped with a silver buckle and a jacket made for motorcycle racing with high, heavy steel toed boots that Molly had begged her to let her borrow on more than one occasion. Each article of clothing was enchanted similarly to Harry's leather duster. Not only did the outfit give her protection but it made her look both intimidating and sexy at the same time.

"Harry Dresden's residence." She said into the phone. After a few seconds she gave Harry a perplexed look and continued to listen.

"I see, are you sure?" Lash said.

"I understand, Harry is right here if you want to talk to him." Lash replied into the receiver, "Harry, its Murphy." She said offering the phone to Harry.

"Murph, what's up? I was just about to go after Megan."

"Harry, we just got a call from the senator's aid. She's been found and is safe." Murphy said sounding relieved.

"Where is she Murph?" I asked worried.

"Not sure, but we were all told to stand down Harry. I assume that means she's made it back home."

"This isn't good. She can't just go back to her home like nothing's happened. Like it or not she and everyone around her is in grave danger." I told the cold plastic in my hand.

"Harry I understand what you're saying but there's nothing I can do. If I get caught anywhere near this thing it'll be my badge." Murphy said in a quiet angry tone.

"I get it Murph. I'll be quiet about it, but I'm going to get her back." I said.

"Just don't burn down any buildings this time, Harry." Murph said with a slight forced chuckle at the end.

"Yeah, I'll see what I can do." I said and hung up the phone.

"So what now Harry?" Lash asked.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door. Lash and I looked at each other for a moment. I pulled my duster close and moved to the door. I slid the peep hole open and on my stoop stood two men in expensive suites with a limo half pulled into my drive way.

"Mr. Dresden? Harry Dresden?" The man asked self-consciously.

"Yes…" I said through the door.

"I'm Senator Forthright. I was given your card by my daughter. Can we talk?" He said holding up one of my business cards.

Some days I wish I'd become a doctor, a lawyer or even a construction worker, my life would be a lot more simple. This was one of those days.


	8. Show and tell

"V for Vengeance"

_A/N: I almost split this into two chapters but it's taken so long to get this chapter out I didn't want to move the fight to another chapter._

Chapter 8

I stood at the door for a long moment as the senator and his friend stood in my dark stairwell. Thoughts buzzed through my head, what did he know about her condition? Why did she give him my card if she hasn't been nabbed? Why did he call off the manhunt just to come visit me? Is this even her dad, I'd never seen him in person, only on bill boards that I ignored for the most part.

"Mr. Dresden? As nice as your dark doorstep is it would be nice to come inside, we have important business to discuss." He said giving me an annoyed look through the peep hole. "I can make it worth your while." He finally said a little annoyed pulling me out of my head and back to reality.

"Oh yeah, sure." I said opening the door for him but did not invite him in. Instead I gave him an expectant look as I held the door open.

"Thank you." He said a little indignantly as he and his assistant pushed over my threshold with no problems and entered my tiny apartment. Once inside I ushered them into the living room.

"Senator Forthright, I'm Harry Dresden and this is Lash." I said by way of introduction.

"I'm Megan's dad, this is my assistant Howard." He said as he slid out of his expensive over coat looking for a place to put it.

"Allow me." Lash said taking our guests coats and hanging them over the umbrella stand that had two swords, two staves carved with runes and a broken umbrella in it.

"Harry, I'm going to go change into something more appropriate." Lash said and slipped into the bedroom door.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." The senator said giving me a sideways glance. Lash was decked out in well fitting, enchanted, black leather from head to toe including her steel toed combat boots. I really didn't want to explain it to him so I let him fill in the kinky blanks for himself.

"No not at all." I said, "Please have a seat. Can I offer you something to drink a coke or juice maybe?" I offered in my most polite host voice.

"No, thank you though." The senator said as he looked around my apartment with a dubious eye.

"So you said your daughter gave you my card? Can I ask when and how you saw her?" I asked grabbing myself a coke from the ice chest.

"I just left her about half an hour ago. I debated if I was going to contact you or not. She seems confused if not brainwashed and then she covertly slips me the card of a man calling himself a wizard while refusing to return home and saying truly horrible things about me and her mother." He said sounding angry, worried and hurt, all at the same time.

"I see. It sounds like you've had quite a busy day. When you saw here how did she look? Did you notice anything odd about her appearance, her eyes maybe or her behavior? Aside from the family drama I mean." I said sitting and turning my high backed leather chair around the coffee table to face him.

"She seemed nervous sitting next to that strange guy. Can you believe he actually had what looked to be thrones on a raised dais? Well I'm sure you know all about it, you probably introduced her to this guy." He said giving me an accusatory look.

"Actually your daughter came to me for help to get away from him. I only met him once and things got a little rough, but I kept her away from him." I said a little defensively.

"Well you screwed up somewhere Mr. Wizard because she's living in his mansion now." He said his face turning red as he glared at me in the dim light.

"Okay, calm down senator. You came to me for answers remember." I sat up straight looking down my nose at him and gave the senator a long hard look that seemed to get his attention. Being tall has its advantages and I'm not a small guy so I can be imposing when I want to be and when a wizard gives you a hard stare, you can feel it in your bones. "Now I'm going to tell you the story and you're not going to like it. Hells bells, you probably won't believe it, but you have to understand that your daughter isn't the same person that she was a week ago and things will never go back to being the way they used to be."

"What do you mean she's not the same person?" He asked incredulously.

"Okay, let's start at the beginning. Megan went on a hike with her troop and decided to go back into the woods to look for something one of the girls lost. You know that, it's in the police reports. What you don't know is that she slipped and banged her head and passed out. When she woke up it was after dark and while she was hiking back to her car she was attacked on the trail. That's when everything changed." I said giving him a meaningful look.

"Attacked, you mean raped? Is that what this is all about?" He asked his eyes hard and narrowed not liking where this was going.

"No she was actually bitten and infected." I said.

"So you're saying she has some sort of virus or disease? Like rabies?" He said.

"Yes something like that, a disease that has serious and life changing side effects you might say." I filled in the gaps, keeping it in the land of the normal as long as I could.

"So why did she come to a wizard instead of a doctor and why didn't she tell me any of this." He said.

"She couldn't. She was afraid and she ran, she came to me because her problem falls on the spooky side of the street that most people don't deal with, much less believe in." I said.

"Mr. Dresden, I work with CEO's and politicians all day. I can dance around a subject with the best of them, you're not telling me something and I get the feeling I need to know what that is." He said giving me an honest look. "Now spill it. What's the big secret?"

"Mr. Forthright, what Harry isn't telling you, is that your daughter was bitten by something not human, and it has infected her, changed her in a very fundamental way. If she's not careful she will probably turn into the very sort of beast that bit her and then she'll not only be inhuman but she'll be a monster. She will become an animal that feeds on humans to survive." Lash said as she stepped into the living room, wearing a knee length black skirt, white button up satin shirt and black pumps. She looked very respectable and her ice blue eyes flashed dangerously as she spoke to the senator.

"Bitten by what, a werewolf?" He asked incredulously his face turning pink again.

"Close, she was bitten by a vampire. He's not an ordinary vampire either, he's old and strong. He's the kind that knows better than to make big waves that call attention to himself. If he has your daughter and met with you, letting you see her, he must really want her badly. He told me himself he had plans for her but I don't know what or why." I said stopping to take a drink of my coke.

"You mean to tell me that my daughter has gone team Edward, for real? How much do you charge for this crap?" He said his face turning a darker shade of crimson.

"I told you that you weren't going to like it. It's a lot to take in all at once but I assure you it's the truth." I said setting my coke on the table a little harder than I meant to. I understood that this was new to him and he had no reason to believe me but I still felt angery at being scoffed at.

"That's the reason she doesn't want to return home. When you're bitten but haven't fed yet, you're still half human, but the hunger gnaws at you. You're daughter is strong and hasn't given in to her hunger yet, so the part of her that is your daughter is still there. Once she feeds she'll come into her full power and lose nearly all of her humanity. Only those with a very strong will can hold on to any part of who they are once they are turned. Many simply go mad driven by their hunger to hunt and kill like a wild animal. Some have more control and can function in their society. There are still others can maintain their sense of self and can control their hunger. Make no mistake however, once a vampire has turned they must feed, regularly or the hunger will consume them." I finished giving him a long hard look.

"Megan hasn't returned home because she is a very real threat to anyone around her until she learns to control her hunger. I tried to put her in the care of an organization that helps half vampires, those who haven't turned. The heads of those that were to escort her to their compound were left on my doorstep, hence the police tape. I was just getting ready to go look for her when you arrived." I finished, taking a sip of my coke. Admiting that he was taunting me didn't make my anger go away any.

"If what you are saying is true and she hasn't fed and turned into a full vampire, is there any hope to change her back?" the senator asked skeptically.

"Although there is always hope, alchemists, doctors and wizards have been searching for a cure for hundreds of years, so far they've come up with nothing." Lash interjected. "All we've learned is that it's a disease transmitted to the victim by the vampire's blood. They have to consciously try to turn someone, that's why they can feed without creating an army from their victims."

"What does this monster want with my daughter?" The senator asked, his knuckles turning white pressing against his knees.

"I don't know." I said simply. "But it's likely that her harsh words were meant to protect you from him. He's very dangerous and if he's as high up on the food chain as I think he is, he can have a small army here in no time. She probably said whatever she could to make you leave and not try to rescue her since she has an idea what he's capable of. That and she can't exactly go home, from what she said she almost ate one of your housekeepers when she snuck in the other night to grab some clothes."

"How do I know you aren't in cahoots with this guy? How do I know what you're telling me is the truth. Let's face it, although it makes for a good story, I only have your word for what you're telling me. Can you offer me one piece of proof or evidence to back up what you're saying?" He asked reasonably, hiding his anger and frustration behind a mask of diplomacy.

"Actually I believe I can. Let me make a call." I said and went into the kitchen.

After making a phone call Lash and I led the senator and his associate to a squat building that looked like so many other business offices in this part of town. The notable exception was that this was the city morgue. They renamed it but that's what it was.

After finding a space near the door to park the truck the limo took up a number of spaces across from us. The senator and his associate met Lash and I at the door, as I was about to buzz the intercom, Murphy opened the door and escorted us down the long hallway, past the guard station. As we neared the end of the hall the oompah of polka music leaked out of the one lit office in the hall. We stopped and I knocked loudly. The music died and the door opened to reveal a small office filled with file cabinets, a tiny desk with a computer, which was turned off and my favorite ME.

"Hi Butters, this is senator Forthright and his assistant." I said introducing the only two new faces in the small crowd outside his door. "Senator Forthright, this is Dr. Waldo Butters Medical Examiner and this is sergeant Murphy of Chicago's Special Investigations unit." They nodded and exchanges handshakes and abbreviated greetings.

"Well butters, its show and tell time." I said patting Butters on the back.

"Um Harry, the last time I did this with city officials I almost lost my job. Is this really necessary?" He asked.

"I'm not asking you to come to any conclusions or anything, just show him the two from my office building the other night, he can come to his own conclusions." I said confidently. "Also, senator, this is strictly for your benefit, it would be best for all concerned if we don't let this go any further than between just us." I said reasonably.

"Agreed. Now what were you going to show me?" He asked impatiently.

"This way." Butter said, leading us back down the hall to a large examining room with two gurneys covered in sheets already in the room. "Here they are, but if anyone asks I'm going to deny you were ever here, because I wasn't." Butters said pulling back the first sheet to reveal the black rubbery skin, misshapen head and gaping maw of Larry and then the other vampire.

"What on god's green earth is that thing?" the senator asked as his assistant made gagging noises.

"That is a red court vampire, senator Forthright." I said. "One of those things infected your daughter."

"But he looked human, normal…" The senator stammered.

"It's called a flesh mask. They learn to conceal themselves in them. That is why they usually look young and unnaturally beautiful or masculine." I said. "This is what the look like when they turn until they can form a flesh mask but even then, underneath they still look like this." I said.

"So you're telling me my daughter is one of these things?" The senator asked turning green.

"Not yet. She's still mostly human. Until she feeds, until she kills another human being, she's still only what we call a half vampire. She has changed, for example she is faster, stronger and has heightened senses but her body hasn't changed into one of those yet." I said calmly.

"My God… You're telling me the truth." The senator said, his face going pale as he covered his eyes with his hands.

"It's a lot to take in sir. Why don't we go to Waldo's office and talk there." Murphy said, putting a hand on the senators' shoulder.

Walking back through the hall the senator turned to Murphy, "You're a police officer, right?" He asked.

"Yes sir." She replied with a twinkle in her eye.

"Why haven't you told anyone about this? Why isn't the National Guard hunting these things? Why hasn't anyone been told?" He said incredulously.

"Senator, did you believe Harry when he told you about vampires? When he first told you, what was your initial reaction?" Murphy asked.

"That he was a nut job." The senator replied honestly.

"That's exactly my point. Butters has DNA evidence, bodies that are obviously not human and the one time he tried to tell anyone about it, he was demoted and sent to a psych hospital for six months until he was willing to say they were just deformed human remains." Murphy said. "If you want to tell the world that vampires and other monsters exist and are stalking our cities, go right ahead but be warned, your campaign contributions may be lacking in the next election." Murphy finished.

"I see your point." He said a little crestfallen. Then after a short pause he looked at Murpny, "Other monsters?" he asked almost sheepishly.

"Let's stick with one revelation at a time, senator. I'd hate to give you a migraine." I said with a wry grin.

"So says the Wizar… Wait. No… Are you really a..." The senator stammered.

"See too much at one time can give you a headache. Yes, I am a Wizard." I said giving him a smile. "But I'm on your side. Try not to think too much about it for now, the only reason I brought you here was so that you'd take this threat seriously and not treat it like a run of the mill kidnapping. If you sent the cops in there right now, it wouldn't go well." I said.

"Can't you just cast a spell or something? Maybe teleport her or whatever you call it, summon her to you?" Senator Forthright asked.

"First off only demons and fairies come when you summon them. Humans have free will and come and go as they please, same for vampires more or less." I said as we sat around Butters desk. "The teleportation spell is a good idea, but I don't know anyone who's mastered it, so that's out of the question. We need to either go in by force and grab her or wait for him to move her and snatch her then. Either way, he's not going down easy and he's likely to have reinforcements since he knows I'll be waiting for him." I finished.

"Fairies, really? Like Tinkerbelle?" The senator said shaking his head.

"There aren't many like her actually, some of the dew-drop fairies and a few others are cute but aside from them, think Brothers Grim. Think Trolls, Gruff, Dryads, Nymphs and other Fairies that will trick or seduce you and then suck the marrow from your bones and laugh while you scream." Lash interjected.

"What did you mean you'll be waiting for him? The place is a fortress, he has armed men everywhere and the women look more dangerous than the men did." The senator asked giving Lash a worried look.

"Your daughter came to me for help and not only did he take her, he killed two mortals, well one mortal and one half vampire, but the bastard sent their heads to me just to rub my nose in it. So yeah I'm not going to let that just slide by without doing something." I said my anger rising in my stomach again.

"Harry, maybe that's what he wants, maybe he wants you to come for her. If he could take the girl and Chicago's resident wizard it would build his credibility in the red court and leave Chicago open for them to move in." Murphy said calmly.

"If he were after me, then why take her and why didn't he bring more friends to my office the other night and just take me then?" I said.

"Maybe that wasn't his original plan, but you do have a way of pissing people off and making things personal." Murphy said.

"No, he's an old one. Think of it, he has been around for at least a few hundred years. He has survived that long by being smart and defeating anyone who has come after him. It's most likely arrogance and overconfidence. When you've lived centuries, its fun to have a decent challenge every now and then, I think he's toying with Harry to see if he's really foolhardy enough to challenge an elder vampire. Harry does have quite a reputation among that crowd. If Harry comes after him then he gets to defeat the infamous Wizard Dresden, if not then he at least got to poke the bear and walk away to brag about it later." Lash said.

"Wait, he's hundreds of years old?" The senator asked his eyes wide.

"Vampires can live thousands of years if they are smart and don't go mad from boredom." Lash said matter-of-factly. "The older they are the stronger they are as a general rule. You don't live off humans for that long without learning and growing stronger than your prey or advisories, even those in the vampire community are constantly trying to move up in the ranks and the only way to move up is to fill a dead man's shoes. In this case it's quite literal, unless someone loses favor or steps down, which usually doesn't happen, and if you lose favor, you don't normally live long." Lash said with a frown.

"Okay so you think he's using her to better his position or worsen someone else's?" I asked.

"It makes sense. If he can bring something new to the table while discrediting someone else, then he may be up for a promotion." Murphy said.

"But why did he take Megan? What does she have to do with all of this?" He asked.

"That I don't know. Is there something that you are working on that he could use her as leverage to sway your vote or position on something? Maybe funding for central or South America?" I asked.

"If it is, he didn't say anything about it when we met. He just told me that she's fine and wants to live with him. Since she's legally an adult there's nothing I can do about it and he seemed to gloat over it." The senator said irritated.

"Then it must be something about her specifically. Her birth date, some sort of prophesy or something maybe?" Murphy asked.

"Possibly, I'll check around and see if I can come up with something." I said rubbing my jaw.

"Harry, I hate to break up your party, but I have work I have to get back to." Butters said looking at his clock and powered off computer. Butters wasn't the pushy sort, but the last time he had anyone of authority in his office talking about vampires it got him a stay in a rubber room, so it was understandable that he looked nervous.

"Yeah, you're right. It's time we should get going. Thanks for the show and tell Butters." I said getting out of my chair.

"Don't thank me, I wasn't here, this never happened but you still owe me one." Butters said with a smirk and a twinkle in his eye.

I like Butters, he wasn't you're typical hero, but he was brave. I'd seen him stand in a street full of zombies, scared out of his mind but he didn't stop doing what he needed to do for even a second. He may not be the leading man type, but he was learning and I respected him.

As we walked out into the parking lot we stopped between the two vehicles.

"So what do we do from here?" The senator asked.

"Well you go home and tell everyone that your daughter is fine and has been sent some place warm to recover from her days lost in the woods. I'll see if I can figure out why he took her and what his next move is." I said confidently.

"What if he does nothing and they just stay here, if they live as long as you say, a decade or two would be nothing for them." The senator said worried.

"True but he's not from around here and this is not red court territory, he'll want to get back to safer ground soon enough. We just have to find out when they are moving and grab her then." I said.

"What then? If like you say she can't come home, either way I've lost my daughter. This guy is a jerk but from what you say he's powerful and can protect and provide for her. What chance does she have with your friends?" He asked.

As the senator finished his question I felt the hair on my arms stand up and felt a sickly chill run up my spine.

"Yes wizard, tell him what her chances are with the Fellowship. Tell him how they are constantly under attack and how the life expectancy of any member of the Fellowship is less than a decade." The voice came from behind the limo, it was reasoning yet mocking at the same time. I could make out three figures behind the car in the shadows moving towards us. I grabbed the senator and started backing towards my truck.

"Tell the senator how she will have no real home, moving every few weeks as one safe house after another becomes compromised. Tell him how half of the deaths to the Fellowship members come from other Fellowship members who lose control and slaughter their coworkers." The voice continued as the three men approached the back of the limo.

Honestly I knew they moved around a lot but as for the number of people lost to other members losing control, I had no idea how accurate he was on that one. I'm sure it happened, but half all fatalities seemed a little high.

"Explain to him how having her in danger and in harm's way is preferable to living like royalty in safety. It's too late for her to continue her original existence. The real question is what she does from here. My lord wants to care for her, I suggest for all concerned that you simply walk away wizard and let her live." The man finished stepping into the light of the parking lot.

He was dark skinned with short dark hair. He wore a long trench coat as did his two companions. They were all between five foot ten inches and six feet tall. All had the same dark complexion, eyes and hair. They all sent my creepy meter into the red and Lash and Murphy were eyeing them as well as we all backed slowly to the truck with the senator behind Lash and I.

"So you think I should just let bygones be bygones, then?" I said with a smirk. "Maybe send them a nice fruit basket with a note asking to be friends?"

"If only you had been that civil to Bianca this whole mess could have been avoided Wizard Dresden, or didn't you tell the good senator that the wizards are at war with my kind because you slaughtered one of our court at a gala festival, of which you were an honored guest. That you then proceeded to burn her, her staff and her home to the ground for good measure." He finished.

"Yeah, it was a really bad party." I said to the senator who was looking at me like I was some kind of a monster. Murphy smirked and Lash had a slight smile on her face.

"So what, your blood sucking baron has gone all paternal and wants to adopt Megan? Why should I believe you? He's up to something and even if the Fellowship of St. Giles isn't perfect but it beats living as a monster." I snarled.

"Wizard, I'm afraid you haven't seen a real monster yet. I want your word as a Wizard that you will not interfere with my Dukes plans and I'll allow you to pass unharmed and live this night." The man said, his voice growing deeper and hollower towards the end.

"What if I tell you where you can stick your oath?" I asked reasonably.

"Then you will die this night." He said and he and his companions seemed to get a little taller. If I had a dollar for every time a thug told me I was going to die I could retire some place nice, but honestly this guy seemed pretty determined.

"This isn't good, Murphy I hope you brought extra clips. Senator I need you and your aid to get into the truck and lock the door and stay there." I said quietly and calmly inching to the side of the truck.

"What's going on here?" The senator's aid asked turning pale.

"There's going to be a fight." I said shaking my shield bracelet loose on my left hand and slipping my right hand into the bed of the truck grabbing my staff. Murphy's hand was on her pistol and Lash had her hand inside her bag.

"You asked if I was a wizard and if vampires really exist, now you'll get your proof." I threw the door to the truck open and helped/shoved the senator and his aid into the bulletproof cab, locking and slamming the door as the three figures closed the distance with an amazing speed.

"Finally, a fair fight!" Murphy said as the three of us brandished our weapons facing our attackers.

I brought up my shield in a quarter sphere between us and our attackers as Lash yelled, "Hudor!"

I felt Lash drawing in power and a stream of water about six inches thick shot out in front of her as if shot from a high pressure fire hose, catching the guy on the left in the chest and threw him back into the limo about thirty feet away, shattering windows and leaving a vaguely body shaped dent in the side near the back door. Murphy opened fire on the guy on the right as he bobbed and weaved towards her she caught him twice in the chest sending black gouts of gore spraying behind him, only slowing him a little as he closed.

The leader came right at me and just before he hit my shield he jumped in a high arch, easily clearing my shield. As he came directly overhead I shouted "Forzare" sending a white lance of force into him catching him unceremoniously in the backside and sent him spinning and tumbling towards the ground about ten feet away from the other side of the truck.

I was about to turn to face the leader of the vampires when my left wrist stung and a large blue circle washed over my shield.

"Harry, we've got a shooter behind the limo!" Murphy shouted as she put another three rounds into the gut of the vampire closing on her. He crumpled to the ground howling as black liquid poured down his legs both front and back.

"I've got him Harry, you take care of the leader!" Lash said with a deadly tone and a snarl on her face.

Murphy opened up on the vampire Lash had thrown into the limo, sending blood and glass flying.

Lash lifted her wand to the limo and whispered "Photas" and the limo began to glow like a 100 watt light bulb and then got brighter. The figure behind the limo turned his head from the bright light for an instant, he was laying prone in the raised grassy hill between the two buildings parking lots with a large rifle in front of him with what looked like a telephoto lens for a scope. Lash leveled her wand again and rasped, "Fotia" and a small orange yellow glowing ball shot from the tip of her wand and streaked at the figure on the grass.

As he looked back towards us the glowing ball hit the large scope in front of his face and expanded more than exploded with a loud Whooshing sound as fire engulfed a sphere about ten feet across. The figure screamed and launched himself towards Lash, it's flesh mask melting and dropping away as it's claws extended well beyond what a normal human's arms would and it's face fell away revealing the black slick flesh beneath and it's jaws dropped open revealing large fangs and a row of razor sharp teeth as it screeched in agony with fire still burning it's flesh on its back.

The leader turned to face me after landing rather awkwardly. "So you're not as big a pushover as I'd hoped." He said, anger showing in his deep raspy voice as he looked at me with his large black eyes, his skin splitting at the hands and mouth as he stretched. "No matter, you will be dead enough soon." He said as he slashed his hand to the side rasping a guttural word and tearing a slash in the fabric of reality.

"Yeah, yeah, I've heard that before. Now you're planning on bringing more friends to the party? Hey, just like old times, too bad we're not in your house so I could redecorate it like Bianca's." I said with a smile.

"You'll pay for your insolence, wizard!" He raged as the hole grew larger and large figures began to move in the darkness of the nevernever.

"I hope you take a check." I said not liking the way this was going.

"Lash, Murph, we have company coming!" I said over my shoulder.

"Well, so much for a fair fight." Murphy said putting two bullets through her vampires head, neatly separating it into two halves as it fell around the things neck. As she spoke the extra rounds in the large caliber rifle exploded sending shrapnel into the limo and making a loud racket.

Lash mumbled something and the charging vampire sniper was hit in the chest with a lance of force that made sick snapping, popping noises in its chest as it was thrown back and to the ground hard enough to make its head bounce on the pavement a few times. Then Lash said, "Alama" and a thin white glowing line extended from her wand which looked similar to an anemic light saber. As she slashed it at the creature writhing on the ground, the light didn't touch the creature but that didn't stop deep clean slices from appearing on its abdomen and extremities. Lash's wand flicked quickly and precisely, severing its claws from its arms and legs, ripping open its belly and then finally severing its head from its body. With one last flick she mumbled "Incindus" and a white hot beam of light shot from the tip of her wand striking the thing in the chest covered in black sticky liquid setting it ablaze.

As the first thing made its way through from the nevernever, I pulled my blasting rod and leveled it at the vampires chest, pushing my will and anger into the rod like dirty clothes into an already full laundry bag. "Feugo" I spat sending a narrow beam of yellow and orange light at his chest. The vampire jumped clear and to the right, but I anticipated his landing and caught his leg before he landed, pushing the beam up towards his stomach. He yowled in pain and anger, throwing himself down and to the left as the first monster headed for the truck.

The senator was peeking through the windows, his hair and eyes visible watching the carnage unfold in disbelief. His aid was laid out on the floor of the truck unconscious, which for his mental health was probably a good thing.

"Now you die wizard!" The vampire yelled, quickly moving behind the procession of large things emerging one at a time into the darkness and heading for yours truly.

"So you say, what you're going to hide behind these things instead of face me like a man?" I snarled.

"I'm not afraid of you wizard, but I'm not stupid enough to risk myself when I have cannon fodder to expend. You'll tire soon enough then you're mine." He said ominously from the darkness. It wasn't a bad plan, but I wasn't about to let this guy win.

"Yeah, just remember this you coward, you're flammable!" I spat back as I lined up my next shot with my lasting rod, waiting for just the right moment. I slammed my will and rage into the rod until the runes burned golden and then I said "Forzare". A lance of white force caught the first monster just as it was directly between me and the lead vampire. I hit him in the chest hard enough to lift him off his feet and drop him with a loud thud on top of his master. The creature screamed with rage and pain as it tried to untangle itself from its master.

"Harry, what are those things?" Murphy asked reloading. Lash lit the other dead vampire on fire sending orange and blue flames into the night and a thick, acrid smoke started to fill the air.

"I haven't got a good look at them yet but my guess is ghouls." I said.

"Stupid, strong and vicious, all the traits needed for a henchman's resume." I said trying to get a count on how many of these things had already made it through the opening. They were moving in front of the vampire getting their bearings, their glowing red eyes looking at us like a lunch platter of expensive cold cuts.

"Harry, I could use more firepower." Murphy said sending three round burst down range, causing the receiving parties to howl and jerk as blood and gore flew from their backs but doing little to stop them. "I think I'm just pissing them off." She said in a clinical cop voice, which meant it bothered her.

"In the truck, there's a strap on the seat, pull it and it opens the back of the seat. I think there's something you can use in there." I told her as I knocked another ghoul into the one behind it toppling them both to the ground.

Murphy banged on the door as the senator turned to unlock it, the ghouls rushed the truck. Lash stuck out her left hand, her charm bracelet clinking as the charging ghouls hit a flat invisible shield, sending silver circles dancing over its surface which was about ten feet square and throwing the ghouls onto their backs.

"Forzare!" I shouted and sent a lance of power into the newest ghoul to cross through the portal knocking him back, pushing him into the rip in reality. "Lash can you close that for me?" I asked as I took aim at the two that were getting up.

Lash pointed her wand at the rift and said, "Ark-Thira". The portal began to shimmer as she poured her energy through her wand and although it wasn't closed. Nothing else came out of it as a barrier formed over the opening and began to pull it shut. The ghoul stuck half in the portal had his upper torso fall back into the portal as its legs turned into ectoplasm, neatly severed where they stuck through the portal. That was new to me, but I suppose when you've been around for a few thousand years, you pick these things up.

Murphy was struggling half in the truck, trying to get the seat open with the senator trying to not step on his aids head. "Holy crap Harry, are you expecting an apocalypse?" Murphy asked as the seat lifted up.

"A gift from my brother," I said as I sent a lance of force into another charging ghoul, catching him in the shoulder dislocating it and sending him spinning to the ground behind the bed of the truck. "Thomas wanted to make sure that if he was with me when I got into trouble he'd be ready."

Murphy rustled in the truck for a few seconds, then put two extremely large clips into the back of her belt and then pulled back with a 45 caliber pistol in one hand and a semiautomatic shotgun in the other. She tossed me the pistol and chambered a round into the barrel of the shotgun while kicking the door to the truck shut as the two ghouls charged again. They jumped Lash's shield and easily cleared the truck, landing between us and the limo as I dropped the pistol into my dusters pocket.

Murphy dropped to one knee and leaned forward as the large barrel of the shotgun roared, rocking Murphy back as the large slug ripped through the first ghouls stomach and left a large hole in its back as bone and gore erupted leaving carnage strewn across the parking lot, slowing but not stopping the monster.

"I hate these guys Harry!" Murphy said as the gun roared again, this time pushing the base of its spine out its lower back, dropping it to the ground bleeding gouts of a greenish blood as its claws scraped the pavement still moving forward, it's fanged jaws wide as it shrieked in pain and rage.

I was able to catch the ghoul rushing around the end of the truck with a lance of flame and sliced its chest and severed its disabled arm before it slammed into my shield, pushing me back a few steps from the force of impact. It slammed its good arm against my shield with enough force to make my wrist tingle, its clawed arm a blur sending blue circles across my line of sight as its frenzied attack started to take its toll on my shield. I shoved my blasting rod at the creature, mixing soul fire with my rage, fear and intention as I unleashed a thick lance of force into the ghouls face catching it under its chin. The heavy, big ghoul was thrown back and a sickening crack came from its neck as flew back its head bent back and to the side at an unnatural angle. As it impacted on the ground and began to melt into ectoplasm, I heard Lash scream.

I turned and saw one ghoul about five feet from the far side of the truck laying burning in a heap while another had burst through Lash's shield and was rushing towards her its claws outstretched as it howled.

I pushed more energy into my bracelet as I created an angled flat shield from the bed of the truck over our heads. The ghoul hit the shield hard and slid over the top of us, its momentum carrying it almost to the limo. These guys were at least seven feet tall and had to weight at least three hundred fifty pounds but for their mass they were fast and very strong.

I felt impact against my side, throwing me into the side of the truck bed hard and then Lash was sent tumbling next to Murphy and blood began to pour from fresh cuts in her face as she lay flat on the ground, her eyes glassy.

The leader of the vampires stood behind Murphy facing Lash, flesh still clung to its face in chunks but its flesh and clothes had ripped away entirely from his body. His flabby, greasy, black stomach wobbled as it lifted its large clawed hands over his head, its maw opened wider than looked possible as it prepared to strike at Lash's prone and stunned body.

Murphy's gun roared pushing the oncoming ghoul back and she let the force from it roll her backwards. As the vampire forced its arms down with all its weight and strength the shotgun roared again, catching him, it in the middle of the chest, lifting it off its feet and carrying it back about five feet as it screeched in rage and agony.

I leveled my blasting rod at it and let my outrage and fear flow into it seeing Lash between us limp and bleeding I added soul fire to the mix almost without noticing. "Feugo" I blurted and sent a silvery orange beam that hit him in his flabby stomach as he rocked forward preparing to rush Murphy. I pulled the beam across his stomach and up his chest to his head and as he dropped to his knees, I focused the beam between its large black soulless eyes.

"Who's dying tonight, you jackass?" I asked as his body erupted in blue and orange flames and smoke and flames poured out the top of his head.

As black greasy smoke poured from its body Murphy shouted. As I looked up the last of the ghouls had closed on her and sent her shotgun flying towards the medical building. Its jaws gaping wide, it lunged at her swiping her with its sharp huge claw, ripping her shirt across her side and stomach and the impact sending her sliding across the pavement and into the rear tire of the truck where she stopped crumpled and not moving.

My head was spinning and I was getting really tired from the battle and magic I was throwing around as I leveled my blasting rod at the creature and shouted, "Feugo!" sending a lance of orange and gold at the creature, burning a cut in its leg as it shrieked and jumped away, my beam slicing through the passenger compartment of the limo.

The ghoul landed in front of me, its large red eyes blazing and its jaws wide as it kicked at my arm knocking my staff out of my hands and under the truck. This was the largest ghoul we had seen all night. It was smart, mean and strong and by the way it looked at me I could tell it really wanted to eat me, or at least pick through my entrails.

It was too close to raise a shield so I lifted my blasting rod as its claw blurred in front of my face, hitting my right arm with enough force that I was surprised that it didn't break. My duster saved me from its claws and kept my arm attached to my body. My blasting rod went tumbling away across the parking lot as the creature howled in triumph. I could smell the stench of its hot breath as it grabbed the front of my duster and lifted me with one arm.

I slid my hand into my duster pocket and grabbed the 45 Murphy had tossed to me as in a blur of motion it drew back with the other hand and roared at me as it swung its clawed hand towards my throat. I'm fast but ghouls are crazy fast. Even with the gun in my hand I knew I couldn't aim and fire before this thing ripped out my throat.

There was a loud roar and a small explosion as the ghouls head vaporized in a halo of gore and gooey mist. Bones, blood and teeth splattered against my face and the front of my duster as its arm impacted against my shoulder with enough force to dislocate my arm as I dropped to the ground with a dull thud.

"Holy crap, Harry! Do I bring my work to your office?" Butters said disgustedly, lowering the barrel of the shotgun as the last ghoul fell backward to the pavement and began to dissolve into ectoplasm. Butters just scowled and shook his head as I lay on the ground exhausted and laughed at him.


	9. The power of blood

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 9

I sat in an overstuffed armchair by Murphy's spare bed. Lash lay under the covers with bandages on her face and neck, breathing slowly and deeply. She was simply asleep after being hit viciously by a nasty vampire. The vampire was now a greasy burn mark in the city morgues parking lot. The police and fire department were probably still there trying to make heads or tails as to what happened.

The guard on duty was apparently on break when all hell broke loose and vampires and ghouls attacked a small well armed group in the parking lot. Not that the guard would tell them that, but when he saw the claws and fangs come out, he went to the break room and locked the door waiting for it to be over. It seemed the video surveillance had gone out sometime that night, odd the drive and system that held the digital images simply crashed. The hard drive was smoked and they'd be getting nothing from that. When I hex something it stays hexed, especially technology. That's okay, Butters was due for an upgrade soon anyhow. Although I didn't intend for it to happen, somehow Butters' computer and a few other systems in adjacent rooms got caught in the backlash from the hex and stopped working as well.

Since the chauffer for the senator went MIA before the attack, his aid had to drive the limo across town and torched it, there's no way he could otherwise explain the damage and bullet holes in the car to his insurance or the public in general. The Senator would report it stolen the next morning and that would be that.

After ensuring there was no spinal damage we loaded Murphy and Lash into the bed of the truck, gathered our shell casings and other equipment and drove it carefully and slowly to Murphy's house and parked it back near the garage and carried the two in through the back door to avoid suspicion from the neighbors. Murphy had a goose egg on her head and a few sprained fingers and probably a cracked rib or two but was otherwise alright. Lash had some deep cuts on her face but only shallow cuts on her neck. She and Murphy both were likely to have concussions, so Butters tended to them, keeping a close worried eye on them both.

"Harry, they need to go to a hospital." Butters said at last.

"We've been over this. Lash can't go to the hospital, she ruined a lot of really expensive equipment last time she was there and assaulted a nurse. Murphy would have a lot of explaining to do about her injuries and she doesn't need that level of scrutiny right now." I said calmly.

"Murphy's really lucky she had that vest on or she'd be dead right now. Where did she get a vest with both chain and Kevlar anyhow?" He asked shaking his head.

"Let's just say we have a source who knows her body armor." I said smiling thinking of Charity Carpenter, loving mother and wife, and master blacksmith and body armor maker. We may not always get along but I had to hand it to her, she is a woman of many talents.

"Well I'm just glad that I'll never need one of those. I like my life just as it is, nice and quiet. No roommate, the closest thing I usually have to an emergency is when my DVR is full and can't record my favorite shows." Butters said seemingly very proud of himself. "That is when you aren't making my life more complicated than it has to be." He finished with a playful frown.

"Sorry to drag you into this but you know it's not my fault. Those vampires are the ones who showed up looking for trouble not me." I said defensively.

"Maybe so, but they weren't there to see me."

"I seem to recall you having visitors before and who was it that made them go away and leave you alone?" I asked.

"Yeah, well that had something to do with another case you were working on as I remember." He said with a real smirk.

"Maybe so but they would have come to you either way. If I weren't on the case you'd have had no backup now would you?"

Butters seemed to soften and even smile a little.

"You know a little excitement in a dull life can go a long way Harry. I already have tales to tell my grandchildren from when you rode that dinosaur around the university. That was enough excitement to last me for a very long time." He said remembering the zombies, wizards, necromancers and me in the middle of it all perched on the zombie of a T-rex. Those were good times.

"Look at it this way, when they ask grandpa Butters to tell them another story, now you have one." I said with a grin.

"Yeah I suppose. Hey, being a wizard, you'll still look about the same age as you do now when I'm a grandpa won't you?" He asked.

"Yeah, probably, it's not an exact science but that's likely the case." I said offhandedly.

"Just promise me that you won't drag them into these kinds of messes."

"Butters before you can have grand kids you need to have a date. Let's work on first things first." I said teasing him.

"Hey I've had dates." Butters snapped.

"Name two in the last two years that weren't arranged by your family." I said challengingly.

"You first and you can't count Lash, Molly or Murphy." He said defiantly. It's true before Lash had come back I hadn't dated in years, not since Susan left.

"Like you said I have a lot of time before I have to worry about my legacy." I said with a smirk.

"Not if you keep getting into these messes. Heck Harry, I just saved three of the toughest people in Chicago from certain death from Ghouls and Vampires and I can't even brag about it to my buddies." He said a little miffed.

"You can always tell Thomas, Molly or Michael." I said.

"Yeah, but it's like saving Chuck Norris in a bar fight against a biker gang and I have to keep it quiet." He said pouting. Then after a few minutes of thinking about it he continued, "Maybe it's best if my name doesn't get out in those circles, come to think of it."

"Yeah, have to agree with you on that one." I said patting him on the shoulder.

"How's Murphy?"

"She'll be fine. I don't think she broke any ribs but her shoulder, hip and side will be tender for a few days, and by tender I mean hurt like heck when she moves." He said.

"She's a big girl, she'll manage." Murphy really wasn't a big girl. She was five foot nothing and weighed just over a hundred pounds if she was carrying her extra gun and a few extra clips. But she was tougher that most guys I knew and could fight better than most. I knew she'd be okay.

"Now, the women have been attended to and their wounds cleaned, stitched and bandaged. Now it's your turn Harry. Off with the duster and let me have a look at that shoulder." Butters said with a conviction and take no prisoners attitude. I hate being fawned over and doctors are the worst, present company excluded. Still, I'm a wizard and we're neigh invulnerable, right? So when I winced in spite of myself taking off the long heavy duster, Butters noticed and gave a slight nod noting how I was moving when it hurt enough to show.

He looked at the shoulder and moved my arm, checking range of motion and where it bulged improperly. Then he sat down put his foot in my armpit, holding my wrist tightly.

"You may feel a little pressure." He said doing his best Major Pain impression. Then he yanked with his hands, pushed with his foot and gave a slight twist as he released, causing my shoulder to give a loud POP as it went back into place.

"So are you done yet?" I said as pain shot down my ribs, across my back and throbbed in my shoulder.

"Yep, all done."

My shoulder hurt like mad, but I was now able to move it in most every direction again. I'm sure I couldn't lift much weight with it right now but then again I didn't have to so I didn't mind.

"Oh, by the way the senator wanted to talk to you. He's in the living room." Butters and the senator helped carry the women into the house. After all that had happened, sitting in the bullet proof cab sounded better than riding in the wrecked back of his limo. So he drove while I navigated as my arm wasn't moving very well and the truck doesn't have power steering.

I nodded at butters and got up, giving him my seat to tend to Lash.

I walked into the living room and the honorable Senator Forthright was sitting on Murphy's grandmother's couch with a hand knitted blanked over the back. He looked exhausted, his suit was wrinkled and his hair was messed up from him running his hands through it too many times.

"Senator, you wanted to see me?" I asked limping into the room and sitting in the loveseat at the end of the coffee table.

"Yeah, can I call you Harry?" He asked looking up at me he looked like a mad scientist after a failed experiment.

"Normally I'd say no just out of principal, but what the hell after what you've been through tonight, you've been initiated I guess." I gave him a weak grin.

"So I'm now part of the Monster Squad?" he said shaking his head.

"No, you'd need to get a tattoo and kill at least one vampire for its fang to be a full member." I said mockingly. The senator chuckled then his face went flat again.

"I can't believe I was going to suggest that my daughter stay with one of those things. I've never seen anything move like that and then the big things. I have no idea what they were but the monsters the guys in Hollywood come up with don't come close to what I saw tonight." He said shaking his head.

"Vampires, Ghouls and Wizards, you've had a busy day by anyone's standards." I said quietly.

"So what happens now? When the police show up and look around what are they going to say?" He asked.

"Well, the Ghouls bodies dissolved and the vampires were burned, so they'll probably say it was some sort of gang activity or that some nut job killed a few wild animals and torched them in front of a government office to make a statement. It'll all blow over and get swept neatly under the rug." I said leaning back into the chair. "People only see what they want to see, I'm sure you know what I mean. If something doesn't fit into their neat little box of preconceived notions then they ignore it and it doesn't exist."

"Like Wizards and vampires." He said shaking his head.

"It's easier to sleep when you know that the sound in the middle of the night is just the house settling or the bump is a tree branch banging the side of the house. People like it that way and most have no reason to believe otherwise. I know what people think of me when I tell them I'm a wizard and I'm happy to let them think that because a lot of them would never be able to handle the truth you learned tonight." I said giving him a knowing look.

"Yeah, woo hoo, lucky me." He said holding his head in his hands.

"You asked for proof and you had to know the truth to help your daughter and keep your family safe. That's the only reason I told you any of this. Otherwise I would have let you believe I was a nut case and walk away to forget about me in a week or two." I said.

"No, like you said I asked for it. My mother always said to be careful what you wish for, I guess she was right." He said with a sad chuckle.

"Mothers usually are." I said as he sat up running his fingers over his face and through his hair again.

"Do you think your friend would mind if I made some coffee?" He asked.

"No, that would be fine. She has a Mr. Coffee in the kitchen. Since technology doesn't like me much I'll let you have the honors." I said.

"Is that why you had candles instead of proper lights in your home and drive the old truck?" He asked.

"Yeah, anything electrical or more technologically advanced than the stuff from the fifties tends to break around wizards. The more high tech the faster it breaks, it has to do with the power we use interfering with the man made devices." I said giving him a quick wizards 101 lesson. "That and the candles kind of add to the wizard mystique, but not having hot water is a pain."

"You learn something new every day I suppose." He said getting up and heading to the kitchen. "Damn, my smart phone died. Do you think I could use the phone?" He asked. Being a senator he was being awfully humble for a man in power, but he was respecting my friend and seemed to understand that although he may carry a lot of weight in his circle of friends, he was nearly helpless in mine.

"Just leave a quarter, a dollar if it's long distance." I replied over my shoulder.

A few seconds later I heard the water running then shortly thereafter the burping sound of the drip coffee maker. I sat back in the chair, I had found a position that didn't hurt anywhere and was relatively comfortable, and so I stayed there and closed my eyes.

"… I don't care about that right now, I have other things to deal with. Just clear my schedule for tomorrow let me know if anything important comes up. No, you can't tell anyone about tonight and if anyone asks tell them I'm taking some time off now that my daughter has been found safe." The senator passed orders over the phone in a tone of authority as if he had no reason to believe that they wouldn't be followed and expected no back talk. "Fine, tell them I'll meet with them next week… I don't care if they are royalty, we're so far down on the family tree I'm surprised they even found me." He said. "Fine, make nice with them but I'm not making them a priority right now. I'll talk to you tomorrow." With that the senator hung up the phone.

The coffee maker stopped making noise while the senator was in the middle of his conversation and I could smell the rich aroma of its dark goodness in the living room.

"Did you want any coffee, Harry?" The senator asked.

"Not over my new carpet in my living room he doesn't." Murphy's voice was not loud but was defiantly loud enough to be heard clearly and her tone was one of absolute authority. There was some shuffling and moaning with a few curses mixed in for good measure before Murphy opened the door from her room and came out wearing a thick warm looking robe. "Harry, get in the kitchen with you if you want any coffee." She said giving me a look that told me she wasn't going to budge on this one.

I pushed myself up from the chair, my shoulder protesting loudly. I headed into the kitchen with the nagging feeling that I was missing something. I couldn't nail it down in my head through the haze of my exhaustion and pain fogging my head, but I knew somewhere in the fog there was a light bulb and it was turned on.

The senator had set out three cups and I grabbed the sugar and powdered creamer from the counter along with a couple of spoons before I sat down. I sat across from the senator and Murphy sat at the head of the table. She looked tired but somehow even in a bath robe she managed to make it look good.

"I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. I understand if you want to take tomorrow as a mental health day and stay in bed, but you can't hang around while we investigate. Somehow I think people would notice if their senator was wandering the streets with a cop and a wizard." I said as I began to pour obscenely large quantities of sugar into my cup.

"Well you can't expect me to just sit at home and do nothing. What if I can help you get information?" He asked.

"What if we act on that information and bodies turn up?" I asked. "They could tie it to you. We have our own ways of gathering information that doesn't leave a paper trail. That and one picture of you and I together could cause problems for you. Trust me, let me do my job. You can wait by the phone at home or at the office but you can't be around me while I'm working."

"What do you mean bodies? If they do turn up then the cops will just say it was gang related if it's vampires. You said so yourself." He stammered.

"That's true, but from what you said this guy had a lot of personal protection around him. It's not uncommon for a vampire to have mercenaries or other mortal, professional protection around them. Human bodies are a lot harder to explain." I told him stopping to blow on my hot coffee.

"So what I'm just supposed to sit around or go to meetings like nothing happened?"

"I know it's hard but for now that's exactly what you need to do." Then the light bulb went off again, this time it was a lot clearer. "Did I hear you say you were supposed to meet with some sort of royalty?"

"Yeah, they're from Spain. Evidently I'm related to them on my father's side and my wife is related to them on her mother's side. We're so far down the family tree I'm shocked that anyone noticed." He said shaking his head, "Evidently they wanted to give me some sort of knighthood, being a senator it couldn't hurt." He finished shaking his head. "Why does that matter somehow?"

"It's probably nothing, I'll have to do some digging and I'll let you know what I come up with." I said before taking a long drink from my cup that read, "Hot and flaunting it." It was a cup I got Murphy for Christmas a few years back, I was glad she didn't throw it out.

My eyes were burning and I was exhausted from fighting, the coffee helped a little but would only be a band-aid measure. Murphy looked like she'd seen better days too. The senator was absolutely wired, however. I'm pretty sure it was from the shock of watching the battle up close and personal. I'm sure he'd be looking for a new aid in a few months as I wasn't sure how much more his current one could take.

"So senator, are you doing alright? I know you've had a full day." Murphy asked over her coffee cup saying what I was thinking.

"If I can call him Harry, you guys can call me John." The senator said with a wry grin. "After what we just went through I think we should be on a first name basis." He gave Murphy a well practiced smile. I'm not sure why but it made me want to slap him, really hard.

"Okay, John," Murphy said with a sideways glance at him, "How are you holding up?"

"I've done better, but all things considered I'm doing fine." He said raising his cup to his mouth, looking at her over the rim of his cup as he took a quiet sip. Once again, I was feeling uncomfortable and protective of Murphy. He was married and we both knew it, but he was also a politician and we all knew that too.

"Well, it's getting late and we have everything under control here. Why don't you let Butters drive you home and get some rest? I'll call you tomorrow if we turn anything up." I said calmly.

"No don't bother him I can call a taxi. You're girlfriend is still unconscious, maybe he should stay here until you know more about her condition." He said reasonably.

"Harry, I could drive him, it's not that far away." Murphy offered a little too eagerly.

"You've been hurt and have a head injury, you shouldn't be driving. I'll just expense the taxi anyhow so it's really not a problem." He said giving Murphy a warm smile.

"He's right Murph. You're in no condition to be driving, hells bells you shouldn't even be up after a hit like that. Butters said you're lucky to be alive." I said playing it up just a little.

"Fine Harry, I do feel like I could lie down for a while." Murphy said looking a little woozy.

So with that Murphy headed off to her room again, as she passed Lash's room Butters came out and scolded her and chased her back into her room while John called for a taxi. I took this opportunity to return to the chair by Lash's side. She looked pale and weak.

When morning came, Murphy was in the kitchen early making breakfast. Butters was asleep on the couch, having been up most of the night tending to and monitoring the injured. I hadn't slept a lot but the armchair in the guest room was a lot more comfortable than it looked and I had drifted off some time in the wee hours of the morning.

The coffee and bacon smell coming from the kitchen was heavenly. I found myself following the smell like in one of those cartoons, being pulled unconsciously towards the wonderful smell.

"Good morning Harry. How's the arm?" Murphy asked glancing over her shoulder. She was wearing a pair of gray sweats, slippers and a green apron that said, "Kiss the Chef".

"I'm doing fine, just a little soar." I said. "Is that bacon I smell?"

"It'll be a few minutes, the coffee is ready. Could you bring me a cup?" Murphy asked.

I poured each of us a cup of coffee and added cream and sugar as needed. I set Murphy's cup on the counter next to her as she added potatoes to the electric griddle.

"So when did Charity upgrade your vest?" I asked looking at Murphy over the rim of my coffee cup.

"Last Christmas, she said she had some quiet time on her hands and it helps her to relax." Murphy said with a grin.

"Now that Michael is retired, I guess old habits die hard." I said thinking of Charity Carpenter in the garage with a hammer and anvil wearing thick leather gloves and her cooking apron hammering out a set of ring armor during the kids nap time.

"Look, Harry. I've already called in sick today so why don't you go do whatever you have to do and I'll keep an eye on Lash." Murphy offered kindly.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." I said giving her a serious look, after what had happened in my living room and again in the Hospital I wasn't sure if this was the best course of action.

"Harry, she'll be fine." Murphy said giving me a, "You jerk!" look. "Anyway Butters is here in case anything goes wrong."

"Butters is a good guy and has a lot more back bone than I would have given him credit for, but if Lash has another episode, neither of you can conjure up a shield spell." I said evenly.

"Then we'll call Molly to come and help babysit." Murphy said.

I knew we needed more information regarding when and where they'd be moving Megan and really wasn't comfortable just sitting around. Then again I wasn't too optimistic about leaving two mortals to care for a Wizard who was off her meds. So I picked up the phone and called Molly. I told her to meet me at my apartment in an hour so she could get Lash's meds and then come back to stay with Murphy and Butters.

"Molly will be here in about an hour and a half. If anything happens call me immediately." I said sternly.

"I'm sure between the three of us we can handle it." Murphy said.

"I'm sure you can but still, if anything happens, call me." I said. "I'm going to do some research at my apartment and make a few calls, so you can reach me there."

"Fine, so did you want your breakfast to go?" she asked as she pulled the eggs out of the fridge.

"No that's fine. I should be going." I said shoving a piece of bacon into my mouth. I stood there for a minute savoring the smoky maple goodness.

"Just give me two seconds." Murphy said as she scrambled two eggs and then turned to the pantry. She put a large tortilla on the grill and browned it and then folded in the eggs, bacon and potatoes with a dash of hot sauce, then folded it into a burrito. "Don't eat it while you're driving. You only have one good arm as it is so be careful." She said in her best traffic cop voice.

"Thanks Murph." I said holding the warm burrito.

"Yeah, well can't have you distracted by hunger pains." Murphy said with a smirk.

I knew Murphy had been married a couple of times but I hadn't thought that she may have more in common with Charity Carpenter than I had thought. She seemed to enjoy caring for those around her like they were family. I could see her in that moment inspecting a couple of children, zipping up their coats and checking that they had their lunches before marching them to the bus stop. It never really occurred to me before that Murphy might actually, secretly want that life.

"What?" Murphy said with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing, thanks for the food. I'll call if I get anything." I said and made a hasty retreat to the truck and headed off into the morning rush hour.

"Now make sure she get's this one first, in fact check with Butters to see if she should double up on this one since she missed her last dose and don't leave her alone with either Murphy or Butters, especially Murphy." I said handing the bag full of medicine to Molly.

"You've already told me this Harry. I was here last time they got into it, remember? I'm not about to let them get into it in Murphy's house, I'm not stupid." Molly said her hands on her hips, chin stuck out making her shirt pull tight across her chest, which I really shouldn't be noticing.

"Fine, just let me know if anything happens. Now, off with you grasshopper." I said shooing her towards the front door.

"Fine, but you let me know if you come up with something, quid pro quo." She said with an impish smile.

"Who's the master here?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

"You are the master!" Molly said giving me a deep bow in grand Japanese style. I could tell she'd been watching anime again.

"Just so long as we have that straight." I said.

With that Molly gave me a dazzling grin and headed out the door, resetting my wards as she left. I headed down into my lab and started digging out some old books and rifling through old scrolls.

"Boss, looking for something in particular or are you just making a mess?" Bob asked as the skulls eyes began to give off an orange glow.

"I'm looking for something about Vampires and Royal blood lines. I know I read something about it and there's significance somehow if they turn one of royal blood." I said wracking my brains to try to remember what the deal was.

"Ah, two shelves up, one to the left. It's an old book in a brown leather binding." Bob said, "Or I could just tell you. You're choice. I know how you like to discover this information for yourself. Although since it's already written down by someone else a hundred years ago it's not like it's a huge discovery." Bob said sounding a little snarky.

I fumbled and found the book in question. It weighed about twenty pounds and was as thick as a phone book.

"So why don't you give me your take on it Bob." I said, noticing that the dusty old book had no table of contents.

"Well, there's not a lot to tell actually. The Red Court is like Europe in the dark ages in that they use something similar to a caste system. Which, in this case simply put means, if you were born to royalty, you are royalty, end of story. Similarly, if you were born to a butcher or carpenter you are a butcher or carpenter, no way to change your class or fate, you're a commoner period. In fact a lot of the people around today named Butcher, Carpenter, Hunter or Wood has family names that go back to that time. You know like Roger the Schrubber." Bob said waiting for me to chuckle at the Monty Python reference. When I didn't laugh he simply rolled his eyes and continued.

"In the red court if a royal dies they can only be replaced by a royal. If there's not one waiting in the wings or if there's someone of renowned status who marries a royal, then they may get the spot. There are rumors and myths that the royal blood lines of Western Europe are of the same blood line as the Red Kings original ancestors, but it's never been proven and isn't a widely accepted theory." Bob stopped for a minute his eyes narrowing to pin pricks for a moment then got wide.

"Harry, does this have anything to do with you killing the duke in that duel?" Bob asked pointedly. Actually a sniper had killed him as he was trying to cheat, but I wasn't going to argue the point.

"Maybe, it seems Megan is of a royal bloodline and the guy that has her has made allusions to needing her for something." I said shaking my head.

"Harry, if this guy is a minor royal in the court, then marrying someone of strong royal blood could bolster his ranking quite a bit. It could be a coup of no small significance. If she is of royal blood then I can see why he'd want her badly." Bob finished. "But Harry, in order to be properly wed as royalty in the Red Court they need to offer a sacrifice to the red king, usually a parent or family member of the new member joining the court. Basically it would be her proof of royal blood. The red king must taste it before she can be accepted."

"Since Megan is an only child they'd want her Father or Mother then." I said shaking my head.

"Harry the infighting this could cause in the Red Court could be significant. Maybe you should let him have her. Odds are she wouldn't live to the wedding night once the other royals caught wind of what he's doing and it would distract the Red Court from the war while they went through the power struggle. I mean even if you do get her to the Fellowship of St. Giles, there's no guarantee she won't turn, I mean it does happen." Bob said lightly.

"Bob I can't let them turn her into a monster!" I snarled.

"Not to pick nit's boss, but the boat's already sailed on that one. The only question is if she's half or full monster. Like it or not, you can't save the girl this time Harry." He said flatly.

"Maybe not, but I can help save her family and keep her from becoming a card carrying member of the Red Court." I snarled.

"You want to save a politician, Harry?" Bob asked chuckling. "Look at the irony of it Harry, you want to save her blood sucking father from the blood sucking monster. Who's splitting hairs now Harry?"

"I can't just let them die and I can save at least one human, even if he is a politician he still counts." I said, grabbing the book and heading upstairs, waving my hand to extinguish the candles leaving Bob in the dark.

"I call them like I see them boss."


	10. Friends and Family

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 10

I sat in my living room shaking my head trying to make sense of what Bob had said, the heavy book resting heavily on my lap. I had carried it upstairs with my without thinking and didn't want to go back down stairs right now so I just held it. Mouse wandered over and set his head on my knee, looking up at me with his big, brown, soulful eyes. I gave his ears a good scratch and patted him on the head, all the while wondering what kind of mess I'd gotten myself into. I don't know how long I sat there lost in thought, but it was at least an hour, probably longer as one of my candles burned out in its sconce without my noticing.

I was pulled out of my torrential deluge of thought by a loud knocking at my door. I got up and made my way quickly to the door. I may be tall but I have long legs and am faster and more nimble than I look, I made it to the door swiftly and peeked through the peep hole in my door to see a man in brown with a clipboard and a package. Since my wards weren't giving any warning and he didn't get fried when he touched my door I assumed he was safe.

"Harry Dresden?" The man asked.

"That's me." I said accepting the clipboard and signing for the package.

"Here you go sir, have a nice day." The man said as handed me a package and then he turned and plodded up the stairs towards his large brown van parked on the road.

I was a little nervous as the last packages I received were heads, people's heads. This package was much smaller and both Mouse and Mister were in the house so I could breathe a little easier. I ripped open the package and it contained a disk marked DVD-ROM by the manufacturer and "Lineage" was scrawled in script across the label. There was also a folder containing probably two hundred pages of paper, each with lines and names on it. It looked like the sort of trees you see around the play offs showing what teams are going to be playing each other, but these had too many lines or too few from each paired set. Looking at each page singularly was getting me nowhere. Assuming there was more information on the computer disk I took Mouse for a walk then he and I loaded into the truck and headed back to Murphy's.

The streets were quiet. It was before the afternoon rush hour so I made good time. I could hear the sound of the engine as I passed between buildings the deep purring sound of the engine sounded good mixed with the honking, sirens and bustle of the city.

Mouse followed me into Murphy's yard. I had parked the truck on the street and took off at a gentle gallop, making a quick circle around the house, stopping in the back yard to mark a tree as his territory. Molly answered the door and gave me a perky smile.

"Welcome back Master!" She said, grabbing her wrists behind her back and giving me a deep bow and a little too good of a look. I turned my head as she straightened back up. I had mixed feelings about anime at this point. I mean she was showing me a lot of respect lately, as her master I appreciated it.

"How are things going here?" I asked looking at her face and the bright smile.

"Things are going well. Lash got her medicine, I've been chasing Murphy back to bed every hour and I was just about to make dinner so you're right on-time." She said, turning on her heel and walking back towards the kitchen.

"Good, anything I can do to help?" I asked as Mouse plowed past me and down the hall.

"Sure, you can help me peel and cut the veggies if you like." She said over her shoulder as she turned into the kitchen.

I stepped in, closing the door and locking it behind me, out of force of habit I suppose. Then dropped the package I'd received on Murphy's dining table as I came into the kitchen. I hung my duster over the back of one of the chairs and went to the bathroom to wash my hands.

"So what needs chopping?" I asked.

"Why don't you start with the onions and celery?" She said kicking a small trash can over towards me. Mouse lay down between the table and the kitchen where he could watch the kitchen and hallway at the same time. I sometimes marveled at how smart and protective he was for a dog, albeit a temple dog who may well be more powerful than I am and possibly smarter according to some people.

"I got a package today, can't make heads or tails of it. I'm not sure what it is but it's huge. They sent a print out and also a CD. Maybe we can have Murphy see what's on the CD after dinner." I said peeling the onions.

"Who would send a wizard a CD. Seems like a cruel joke somehow." Molly said slicing up some chicken.

"Yeah, no kidding and even worse I couldn't find a return address on it. " That fact had particularly thrown me for a loop, as in my experience they always made me put down a return address, especially after the terrorist attacks.

"Well Harry, what can you expect? You live in interesting times." Molly said with a smirk.

"Is it just me or do I attract strangeness?" I asked.

"Well let's see, you have an alleged warlock for an apprentice, a repentant fallen angel for a live-in girl friend, one of the avengers of God for a best friend and a temple dog for a pet. Yep, I'd say you attract it boss." Molly said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"I thought I was your best friend Harry?" Murphy asked from the hallway.

"She said it, I didn't. Nobody could replace you Murph!" I said giving her a cheesy grin over my shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say Harry." Murphy said with a smirk as she sat at the kitchen table. "Before you start, I can rest here just as well as I can in bed without feeling completely useless, Molly!"

"Fine by me, but if Butters catches you, I'm going to tell him you threatened me with bodily harm." Molly said as she put a pan on the stove top.

"Deal." Murphy replied, opening the package.

"Hey, that's not addressed to you." I said.

"It's on my table and it was opened so I'm not breaking any laws. Just being nosey, it's a woman's prerogative."

"Hey, while you're up and the wizards are in the kitchen could you take a look at that CD and see what's on it? There's a ton of pages in there that's probably a print out of what's on the disk but I can't make out what it is. Maybe if you saw it on the computer it would give you a better idea what it is." I said getting a raised eyebrow from Murphy and daggers from Molly's eyes.

"What? She'll be sitting, just in the other room." I told Molly.

"You're the boss." She said through tight lips as she shook the pan of meat a little harder than was probably necessary.

I chopped, Molly cooked and Murphy searched as time slowly went by. It was about fifteen minutes before Murphy started to talk to herself. It started out as quiet expletives and turned into an incredulous murmur.

"Murph, everything okay in there?" I asked setting down my knife.

"Where did you get this Harry?" Murphy asked.

"Brown truck expresses no return address. Why have you figured out what it is?" I asked.

"It's a partial family tree, starting with the Merovingian kings, extending to today. If this is legit, there's some really interesting stuff on here Harry." Murphy yelled from the living room.

"Yeah, like what?" I asked.

"Megan and her parents for one, then there's Molly and her family and Sanya too." Murphy said then suddenly almost yelled, "Holy Crap!"

"Murph?" I asked.

"Harry, I'm on here too. The family tree is correct down to my two year old nephew and back as far as I know. I think it's accurate. Except my name is in a different file than Molly's, this one seems to come from another line, a king Coel Hen and his brothers start this line." Murphy said. "Harry, there's a Merlin in here from about 500 AD, I'm in his brother Morydd's linage. You don't think it could be The Merlin do you?"

"It's possible, the time line is about right. Hells Bells, Am I on there?" I asked.

"Not that I can tell, but some of the lines on here are in a language I can't understand, but I don't see any Dresden's." She said. "Harry, the reason I caught Megan and Molly's names is that they are highlighted."

At this Molly's eyes got wide and the pan stopped moving. It took a second for it to register but I was worried.

"You don't think…" Molly said.

"No grasshopper, they aren't after you. They have what they came for." I told her trying to be reassuring. By the look of fear on her face I don't think she bought it either.

"Murphy, any other names highlighted?" I asked watching Molly.

"None in the current generation, but there are some a generation or two back and more the farther back I look. Why?" She asked.

"Just wondering, Murph. Is your name highlighted?" I asked.

"No, but I'm not in her tree. Nobody in my tree is highlighted. I guess we aren't special enough." She said sounding odd.

"Murph, that should be enough for now, at least we have an idea what it is. We can try to figure out what it means after dinner." I said giving Molly a reassuring look.

"There are more files here, I'll keep looking. Call me when Dinner's ready."

Molly and I exchanged a few glances but didn't talk much except to ask for ingredients as she cooked or needed something done. I washed the bowls, pans and utensils as she finished with them so when she got everything in the oven most of the dishes were done.

"You definitely need to be in bed!" Molly said with a sense of authority.

I turned around to find Lash was up and setting the flatware around the table.

"I've been in bed all day long and took every pill you've asked me to, but I can't just lay around, especially when you three can't keep your voices down." Lash said giving Molly a reproachful look.

"Lash…" I started

"No, if she can sit at the computer I can sit at the table! Anyhow I may be able to help, Morydd was the cousin of Merlin. They were of an ancient blood line going, some say back to king Solomon and David before him." Lash said. "If that line and the one of the Merovingian kings are being listed, you should find every royal and influential family in Europe on the list somewhere."

"The fact that Megan and Molly are descendants of the same line means what?" I asked as Molly turned and froze in place staring at Lash.

"It means they have royal blood in them. Other than that I don't know." Lash said.

"Bob said something about the Vampires recognizing certain royal blood lines and that the one that grabbed Megan may be using her to move up in rank to fill a slot left open by the death of Duke Ortega." I offered.

"It's possible that because Molly has come into her power and is your apprentice, that they saw her as more trouble than it was worth. After all, you did start the war with the Red Court over your girlfriend. What would you do if they took your apprentice and best friend's daughter?" I heard a grunt from Murphy in the other room and kept quiet.

"The fact that you Harry and you are covered by the Unseelie Accords would add an extra layer of complication to matters, so Meagan was the easier choice for them." Lash said reassuring Molly.

"Also if they tried to serve your Dad as a sacrifice to the Red King, the White Council and Unseelie Accords would be nothing compared to them having to face the wrath of Charity Carpenter!" I said honestly. Lash and Molly grinned and I heard a muffled chortle come from the living room.

"Wait, a sacrifice?" Molly asked.

"That was the other thing he told me, the Red King needs to 'taste' the royal blood in the parent that gave the child the royal blood." I said.

"Harry, both of Megan's parents are listed in this blood line, which do you think they are going to try to take?" Murphy asked.

"Bob seemed to think it was her Dad, but now that you mention it, it could be either." I replied, setting plates on the table.

"Harry, this is very cool and everything, but who do you think sent it to you and why?" Murphy asked.

"Well, maybe they wanted us to know that both Megan's parents are of royal blood and hence potential targets?" I said.

"Okay, but who would know the significance of the royal blood line and have access to such detailed genealogy information?" Murphy asked. Lash frowned and Molly squinted as my brain began to chew on the question. Obviously it was someone who knew that the Red Court had Megan. They also must know of the significance of her bloodline and had the means to track such a thing. With the internet these days and genealogy sites with millions of peoples information in them it wouldn't be that hard for someone willing to do the additional digging or who came across old family trees to put this together.

Royal blood lines were well documented back to the ancient days, in fact the Old Testament has tons lists of who begat whom in it. So it had to be someone who was in tune with the supernatural community and had the inside track on what was going on. The question that bothered me was why they would send it to me. Were they trying to help or set a trap?

If the wannabe duke was looking to pick a fight, between the heads and this information that Molly was possibly a target, it could be designed to tick me off and spur me to action against him. If he is as old as we think he is, maybe he just wants some excitement. It's not like he can just go to Disney World and he didn't strike me as the theme park type. Then again he has what he wants and why go through all the extra trouble, he insulted me for killing his cohorts, got the girl and rubbed my nose in it, why press the issue?

If it was someone else who wanted to save her why not just come out and say so? Why not deliver the package and any additional information we are to glean from it in person? Once again, it could be someone like the Fellowship of St. Giles pushing me into doing their dirty work and getting revenge and the girl safe at the same time without putting any more of their people at risk.

Then again, there was a young woman taken by force in the territory of a free lord of the Unseelie Accords and he had a no children policy in his town. Maybe 'Baron Marcone' didn't like the attention and unauthorized actions in what he considers to be 'his town'. It would be like Marcone to send me in to do his dirty work and then claim I was on his payroll to all his friends. It had happened before.

Then there was the fact that the genealogy of royal, and most other, bloodlines were usually kept in abbeys or churches in the form of birth, baptism, marriage and burial records. In Europe especially these records go back many hundreds of years. Since Molly was involved and a certain priest I knew was part of what I considered to be the black ops section of the Catholic Church, he could very well have caught wind of what was going on. Since I wasn't supposed to know about his, 'other' priestly duties, maybe he wanted to keep things quiet. Still I'd think he would have put in a communion wafer or something.

Then again there could be other people at work. It could be another Red Court member who doesn't want to lose their place in the line of succession. It could be the Black Court wanting to deprive the Red Court of their prize. There were other options and motives but each was as unlikely and farfetched as the next. There were too many options to worry about.

My head was starting to hurt and the food smelled really good so I pushed aside the thoughts of the conspiracy that I was evidently in the middle of and helped get the food on the table. I coerced Lash into a chair and got the salad and dressing on the table when there was a light but insistent rapping at the back door.

I looked out the glass windows set waist high into the door and didn't see anyone, but the knocking continued. I scowled and pulled my blasting rod out of my coat, shaking my shield bracelet free. I motioned for Molly to get back and she simply vanished.

I moved to the door, crouching as I turned the knob and slowly opened the door.

"Hi, is Karin home?" said the little girl who slipped in through the half open door, completely ignoring me.

"Who are you?" she asked looking at me as I stood up slowly. "You're tall and kind a funny looking. Are you a friend of Karin's? I am! My name is Kristy, spelled with a 'K'. I live next door and my mommy said that she thought something weird was going on here and wanted me to come over to get a cup of sugar for her." She said in one breath as she marched into the kitchen sniffing the air. She must have been about five years old, she had on a long pink frilly dress and her long black hair was in pipe curls that made her look like an evil Shirley Temple.

"So you want a cup of sugar then?" I said feebly.

"Um.. Okay." She said with a bright smile. She then marched through the kitchen to stand in front of the cookie jar and looked at me expectantly. If she wasn't so scary, she'd have been cute. I could see why she and Murphy got along so well.

"Murphy, you have a guest." I yelled into the living room.

"What? Okay, the computer's acting up anyway." She said as Molly appeared in the hallway just out of the little girl's line of sight. I heard her fiddle with the computer then head down the hallway and she and Molly entered the kitchen together.

"Hi Kristy, what brings you over so late?" Murphy said walking over to the little girl and bending down to look her in the eyes as she messed with the little girls bangs.

"Mommy said that strange people were coming and going at all hours so I should come over and get a cup of sugar to see what's going on." She said.

"Ah… I see." Murphy said looking up at me with a slight scowl. "Well they are just friends of mine and are helping me with a case. It's nothing to worry about, their okay." Murphy said standing up and sliding her hands down her thighs to straighten her pants.

"Okay, can I have a cookie?" She said giving Murphy large doe eyes. Man do all girls learn to work it at such a young age? Probably not, I assumed, but this girl was going to be seriously scary when she hit Molly's age at the rate she's going.

"Sure." Murphy said grabbing a cookie from the large jar. "Just make sure you ask your mom before you eat it. I don't want to spoil your supper." Murphy said giving her a serious look. "Now we were just about to sit down for dinner so let me get your sugar and you can head home and tell your mom that everything's fine. Okay?" Murphy said as she shoved a measuring cup into a large glass jar on the counter.

"Okay, but can I come over this weekend to watch TV with you? Please!" Kristy asked pivoting her hips so her skirt spun back and forth.

"We'll see. If I'm done with this case then I don't see why not, otherwise I'll probably be busy." At this the little girl beamed at Murphy and clapped her hands. "Now you be good and mind your mom, okay?" Murphy said giving the girl the sugar.

"Okay! Thank you Karin." She said and started towards the door. When she got by the table she stopped next to Lash and stared at her for a second with an odd smile on her face.

"You're a pretty little girl, aren't you? My name is Lash." Lash cooed at the little girl gently offering her hand to the child.

"I'm Kristy. You're very pretty but you look so sad." Kristy said with a slight frown.

"I've been sick, but I'm getting better and will be fine soon." Lash said giving her a sweet smile.

"Well I hope you get better soon. Maybe you can watch Movies with me and Karin."

"I certainly hope so." Lash said patting her on the head, eliciting a wide smile.

It was about this time that the little girl spotted Mouse lying at Lash's side, the huge mountain of fur lifted its head and sat up to looked the girl in the eye and panted with a doggy smile.

"Wow! Is this your dog? He's HUGE! Can I pet him?" She said in one breath.

"His name is Mouse and yes you may." Lash said with a sparkle in her eye.

"Mouse, that's funny!" Kristy said as she stepped forward and hugged Mouse, sliding her hands over his fur from his back to his chest, then stepped back marveling at the large dog. Mouse moved his face towards her and gave her a sloppy lick up one side of her face, sending the girl into a fit of giggles.

"You better be getting home now, we don't want your mother to worry now do we?" Lash said.

"Nope, bye." She said waving her free hand at everyone in the room in one fluid motion. Then she headed out the door closing it firmly, and loudly, as she left.

"Neighbors nosey much?" I asked Murphy with a grin.

"Not usually, but when a loud truck rolls past their bedroom window in the early morning and five or six people, some of which are comatose go into a single lady's house, they probably get a little suspicious." She said giving me a smirk and elbow to the ribs at the same time. I took the hit but Murphy winced, her ribs were still sore I could tell.

"You don't think they saw us carrying you two in do you?" I asked.

"Probably not, but who knows. They moved in a few years back and they normally keep to themselves in true yuppie fashion, but Kristy comes over every now and then for tea or a movie." Murphy said petting Mouse's head as she sat at the table.

"Murphy, I never pegged you for the tea party type." I said sitting at the table and getting sideways looks from Lash and Molly.

"I was a little girl, Dresden. I wasn't always a cop you know." Murphy said rolling her eyes.

I just smiled thinking of Murphy in a little pink dress, pouring tea into dainty little china cups. It wasn't until I thought of her asking if I wanted one lump or two that I decided that maybe I should let it drop. So I took some salad and passed it to Molly then handed the dinner rolls to Murphy.


	11. Wine and White Lace

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 11

**A/N:** Now that the kids are going back to school soon so hopefully the chaos will resolve itself back into a pattern of daily routines giving me more time to work on my story. Also I wanted to thank everyone for their reviews, good, bad or indifferent. It's nice to know that others are reading my story.

After dinner I called my message service that had a message for me to call the captain at Edinburg. So I called in and gave my pass code to the operator and was immediately put in touch with Captain Luccio.

"Harry, I'm glad you called in. We have word that two high ups in the Red Court are either on their way to or are currently in Chicago with full entourages." She said calmly.

"I knew one was here, he took a Senators daughter and is trying to turn her. I hadn't heard anything about the other." I said scratching my head. "But I did get jumped coming out of the morgue. I thought it was the first guy giving me love. Now I have to wonder…" I said sarcastically.

"That's not all Harry, from what I've heard there may be some black court there as well. I'm not sure what's going on but I thought I'd call and at least see if you needed any help." Luccio said sounding almost concerned for my well being.

"Harry Dresden, need help? It is to scoff and giggle." I said sarcastically, in my worst Russian accent.

"Harry, something weird is going on. If the Black Court sides with the Red Court we could lose this war."

"So I can expect a visit from Marva and her friends too then?" I asked.

"It wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility. You do have a way with people Harry." Luccio said with a sarcastic lilt in her voice. I missed that about her, her dry humor and keen intellect, that and she was a woman to be crossed at your own risk. What can I say, I like a woman who can handle herself.

Captain Luccio and I had an affair a while back. It later came out that someone else had meddled with her mind and orchestrated our affair as part of a plot to influence if not take over the White Council. That left us with some unfinished business and complicated feelings towards each other. I do have a way with the women or what?

"Dresden, are you there?" She asked, pulling me out of my head and memories of the good time we shared.

"Yeah, I got it but do you really think they will both agree to work together? They can't get their organizations within each Court to work together. Do you think the heads of the courts would do any better?" I asked.

"If they were both after the same thing, it could happen. Harry I don't have to tell you that you have history with each of these courts, enough to make them both want to see you dead. Now they are in your town taking women? Young pretty women? It looks like they are trying to set you up, warden Dresden." She said sounding a little too familiar and a little worried under her tough as nails exterior.

"Okay, what if they are both after something else. Like some sort of royal heir? It could be happenstance that she just happens to live in my city." I offered.

"They could also see this as an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Neither of us believe in coincidence Harry." She replied.

"You wouldn't know anything about someone sending me a series of genealogy charts would you?" I asked off handedly.

"No, why?"

"Because I think it may hold the answers to what's going on here. Can you send a messenger to Karin Murphy's house? I'll send you the packets and you can have the guys working intelligence see if they can make heads or tails out of it." I said confidently.

"Sure but I'm not sure what good it will do."

"Me either but another couple sets of eyes on this couldn't hurt."

"I'll send someone. They should be there in an hour or so." She said.

"Okay and I'll work this from my end. In the meantime if Carlos is just loafing about I could use the back up." I said.

"Harry Dresden, Wizard extraordinaire asking for backup? As I live and breathe I never thought I'd see the day." She said over dramatically.

"I thought the kid could use the time with a Senior Wizard and see how one properly investigates. It's purely for his benefit." I said.

"Yeah, I'm sure he'll see it that way. I'll give him a call." Luccio said with a smirk in her voice.

"Thanks Captain." I said honestly.

"Harry, just be careful. I can't afford to lose either of you." She said with more than simply a professional concern in her voice.

"We'll be fine. I'm too stubborn and Carlos is too pretty to die." I said.

"Goodbye Harry." Luccio said and the line went dead.

There's a Chinese curse that goes, "May you live in interesting times." Well I'm not Chinese but having lived an interesting life I understand what they meant. Nothing is more interesting than pain, suffering and multiple deaths. I've seen those in spades and the older I get, the more I seem to get pulled into these situations. Nobody ever says, "I want to have a boring life where everything goes smoothly with only minor annoyances and trivial problems." But then again, I'm not most people.

So, now I had what was probably two rival factions of the Red Court and the Black Court meeting in my town, probably wanting to send a joint war party after me and mine and then decide who gets the girl, if she lives that long. Yeah, I have an interesting life.

Now, here's where I think I make my own life interesting. Most people, if they knew there was a hit put out on them, would run as far away as possible and try to get someone or a lot of somebody's to protect them and keep them safe. I on the other hand see that as a challenge.

Most people would find high walls and a defensible position and big guns to hold up in wait for the enemy to come to them, if they could find them. Me on the other hand, I was looking for their weak spot. Where to strike first and strike hard to make sure that anyone else who ever thought of coming to my town to mess with me or my friends would be forced to stop and think about what happened to everyone else who had tried that in the past. The list was long and they were all dead, with very few exceptions.

I may not be the smartest cookie in the jar, definitely not the prettiest but I was strong and stubborn. That counted for more than most people think. It may not be the smartest thing to do, but that's why most of my enemies didn't see it coming. I mean who would single handedly charge a panzer division? But if you did it right and had surprise and a little luck on your side, it could work and nobody would ever expect it. The only difference between being a hero and an idiot was if you succeeded, living wasn't necessarily a requirement but it was definitely a bonus.

I had tapped out most of my sources about this blood line thing and only had one other source to go to. I had hoped to avoid having to do this but I needed answers and I needed them fast. So I grabbed Mouse and left Molly in charge of the two convalescing women and headed for my truck.

As I was leaving I bumped into Butters coming to check on his patients before heading home after a long day at work, mostly writing fiction about the mutilated nonhuman bodies in his freezer.

I told him I was going out for a while and before he could start in on me I slapped him on the shoulder and told him I couldn't get Murphy to stay in bed. His brows knitted and his jaw tensed as he marched towards her front door, forgetting what he was going to say to me.

As Mouse and I climbed into the truck I hear their voices, discussing the meaning and value of actual 'bed rest' over simply resting. I smirked as the engine roared to life and mouse gave me an accusatory look.

"Don't you start with me..." I said as I released the clutch and the heavily armored antique red truck rolled smoothly down the driveway to the street. Okay, it was a dirty trick, but I didn't have time to listen to him right now and it did the job. I'd have to pay for it later, I'm sure.

Traffic moved pretty well as most people were home eating dinner or watching TV with their families. Most of the traffic was people going to second jobs or those heading to the city for dinner or entertainment. The sun had set about an hour ago, but the city was as bright as daytime as I rolled into the large and very full parking lot of my brothers club, White Lace.

It was a very upscale club run by the family Raith and served as another source of income for them as well as a place to find willing meals for the White Court vampires to take home for dinner. Although I didn't much like the thought of unsuspecting people mingling with various members of the White Court, it was going to happen and this way it kept matters confined. The place gave a whole new meaning to the term, "Meat market".

I showed my ID to the door man who checked my name against, 'the list' and after a few minutes he moved the velvet rope and let me pass, wishing me a good night. I bet a lot of people and not people who came here had very good nights.

I headed to the bar through the throng of Chicago's rich beautiful people, feeling at the same time over and under dressed as people stared at me. Halfway there I was stopped by Dianna, my guide on opening night.

Her gown was similar to what she had worn on opening night, white gauzy material that fit her well enough to move enticingly over her curves as she walked and still leave very little to the imagination. The difference was that this was trimmed in gold and silver along the hem of her skirt as the neckline. She had a fresh face, sort of the girl next door type mixed with a dark haired beauty. Her dark hair, skin and eyes stood out against the stark white of the club.

"Mr. Dresden, glad to see you're back. Are you alone this evening?" Dianna smiled at me as she offered me her hand.

"Actually I'm here to see Thomas Raith, is he here?" I asked shaking her hand as she gently squeezed her warm palm into mine. Her smile was at the same time wholesome and yet still somehow seductive.

Every time I'd called Thomas lately he was at the club or on his way there so it was a good bet that if he wasn't here he would be shortly.

"I'm not sure but I can certainly check for you sir, if you'll follow me please." She said turning and walking with a grace and swing to her hips and spring in her step that made her dress move in wonderful ways.

I followed her to the bar where she stepped behind the counter and picked up the house phone and dialed a few numbers. I couldn't hear what she was saying over the thrum of the music and chatter of Chicago's elite trying to seduce one another. I looked around and saw the dance floor was full of people moving and swaying to the music, most of them in physical contact with their partners making the scene look like something akin to a roman orgy with a light show. The seating area with its grand marble columns and white gauze sheets sat under the large platform that was the VIP area. The dark and semi private tables were lit by candles and through the gauze you could make out fuzzy images of people sitting close and drinking and laughing.

"Mr. Dresden." Dianna said in my ear, pulling my attention away from the clubs normal patrons, "Mr. Raith is here and will join you in the VIP section, if you would come with me." She said with a look like she knew I was watching her legs and back all the way to the bar and enjoyed it. She took my hand and led me through the throng of people around the back side of the club to the stark white marble stair case that led up to the VIP section.

The two men at the bottom of the stairs simply moved the velvet rope with the sign that read, "VIP section" and waved us through.

As we went up the stairs Dianna leaned close to me, "He will be a few minutes and asked me to keep you company until he arrived. Can I get you something to drink while we wait?" She asked. As she leaned close, I had to lean down to hear her which gave me a rather uncomfortable view of my hostess and confirmed that she was not wearing any undergarments under her sheer dress.

"Coffee would be fine." I said quickly turning my head towards her ear to allow me to take in the rest of the club from the VIP section.

"Very good, would you care for anything to eat?" She asked leaning closer and pushing up onto her toes.

"No thanks, I already ate." I said over the music.

As came to the top of the stairs she said something to an attendant standing nearby and led me to an area with heavier drapes.

As we went into the area with a good sized table with high backed chairs and a couple of overstuffed chairs with a coffee table, the heavier drapes cut down on the sound and noise from the club, making it possible to have a normal conversation without raising your voice. The area made it look like a dining/sitting area. Dianna moved to one of the overstuffed chairs and politely sat down and crossed her legs before leaning back into the comfortable looking chair.

A server hustled into the private room, if you can call it a room, and set a ridiculously large cup next to me and a tall long stemmed glass of champagne next to Dianne. It seems I was that I was upgraded to a latte.

"Is there anything else you desire, Mr. Dresden?" She asked, in a perfectly normal voice, her body language made me take it another way.

"No Dianna, I'm fine. Will he be long?" I asked taking the seat across from her, feeling a little uncomfortable. She wasn't unearthly beautiful like the Fae or some vampires I'd met but her humanity and willingness made her all the more attractive.

"He should be along shortly, but I could stall him for a while if you like." She said sitting up straight with her hands on the cushion of her chair, making her gown hug her curves as she gave me a coy smile.

"That won't be necessary." I said turning my gaze to the table, noticing the scrollwork on the chairs. She was pretty, sexy and offering herself to me. At the same time I had an equally beautiful woman at home who cared for me and trusted me. Why settle for cotton candy when you had a full meal waiting at home. That and it just wasn't who I was to treat sex and women as casual play things. I'd seen the white court and stupid men treat women like trash, use them and throw them away and it always made my blood boil.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" said the smooth sultry voice as the curtains parted. As I looked up I saw one of the unearthly beauties I had mentioned earlier. She swept into the room like a breeze. Her sexuality was palpable as she faced me with a come-hither smile.

"Hi Laura, how's tricks?" I said with a smirk. "I was hoping to talk to your brother for a little bit, if it's not too much trouble."

"He's coming, but I wanted to take a moment to chat with you, in private." She waved and Dianna stood and gave me a wave as she quickly exited the room.

"What can I do for you Laura?" I said trying not to notice the expensive wisp of clothing she called a dress or all the wonderful things it barely hid.

"Well for starters you can leave your wizard implements in that gaudy truck you drive. I'm working on making this place respectable and flame free." She said noticing the bulge of my blasting rod under my duster.

"Secondly, I'd appreciate it if you'd call before dropping by so I can be sure that you and my other guests, who you may object to, are kept away from each other. It's not that you're not welcome here, my brother has made it clear that you are, but I like to run a civil establishment and won't have any rough stuff taking place here." She said giving me a dangerous look. "You understand, it scares the straights to see such stand off's and would give the place a bad reputation."

"I get it Laura. You want to run a quiet meat market, keeping everything upscale and happy to draw in more guests." I said ignoring her glare. "I know you won't accept that I have any good will towards the white court or its feeding grounds, because I don't. However, I know you'll understand this, he's my brother too and I don't want to cause any troubles for him and by proxy you." I said as she slid herself up onto the table, putting her hips at my eye level.

"Although you and I may not be friends, we do have an understanding and I'm not in any hurry to change that." I said standing up to look her in the face, "Since many of the sorts of people who would like to see me dead may hang out here, I'm not walking in unarmed, but I won't start anything here either. It would be disrespectful to my brother and make our relationship, complicated." I said flatly.

I didn't flinch as she moved with unearthly speed, moving off the table to stand dangerously close to me. I could feel her breath on my face as she looked up into my eyes with a dangerous flash in hers. I narrowly avoided looking her directly in the eye as she continued.

"So long as we have an understanding and you take any rough stuff outside and away from our establishment, you're welcome in my club." She said in a voice as cold as the grave giving me a stare that let me know she could put me in one if she really tried.

"Harry, I'm sad that you said we aren't friends, we have so much history together." She said her look softening to something very seductive as her hand slid up the front of my duster. "We could be wonderful together you know."

"Thanks, but I've already got a girlfriend." I said stepping back.

"You don't need to be so provincial around me Harry. Most of my consorts have wives or girlfriends. I don't mind." She said looking at me like a child looks at a shiny new toy.

"Call me old fashioned, but I'm a one woman sort of guy Laura. That and being with my brother's sister just sounds so wrong. How would you introduce me at your dinner parties?" I said giving her a cheesy smile.

"Speak of the devil." Laura said with a pout as Thomas pushed open the drapes and walked into the room. "I'll leave you two boys to chat in private, but Harry, just so you know, all of the clubs resources are open to you any time you like. Just do call ahead so we can make arrangements." She said giving me another dangerous smile.

"Sure thing." I said ignoring her, turning to my brother as she swept out of the room.

"Harry what brings you here and what were you two talking about?" Thomas asked as he slapped me on the shoulder watching his sister disappear as the curtains fell closed. He set a bottle of wine and two glasses on the table.

"We were discussing etiquette." I said with a grin. I noticed the label on the bottle and realized not only did it cost more than I make in a year but it was one of those wines I've only heard about in movies or books when the secret agent wanted to impress someone.

"Well, from her look I assume all went well?" He said pouring us each a glass.

"Well enough. We understand each other." I said looking at him. He was wearing a white suit with a white jacket and tie. He looked like a waiter in a fifties movie but somehow he made it look good.

"I'm assuming this isn't a social call?" He said sitting in one of the chairs at the table and motioning for me to sit.

"Actually I need some information." I said taking my glass and sipping the dark red liquid. It was smooth and not bad, but I really didn't see what the fuss was about. I've had five dollar wines that weren't bad. I guess I'm not a wine guy.

"There's a shocker. What do you need?" He said giving me a smile.

"Well I'm working on the Forthright case, as you know. There are some leads I don't know what to do with and they fall on your side of the street so I was hoping you could give me some insight." I said taking another sip.

"My side of the street you say. This must have something to do with the reds you encountered the other night I assume?" He said savoring the wine.

"Yeah, I've heard there are two Red Court entourages in town and a Black Court group either here or on their way. Do you know anything about that?" I asked. Thomas stopped swirling his wine and gave me a look that made me uncomfortable and told me this was news to him all in one glance.

"Two reds and the black you say?" He said acting casually.

"Yes and one of the Red Court entourages has the girl. It seems that she's of an old royal blood line and the guy that took her told me that he had plans for her. I've heard that the reds take some blood lines very seriously and I'm assuming she's part of that line." I said watching him for his reactions. I had a gut instinct that there was something he wasn't telling me.

"Well isn't that interesting?" he said taking a sip of his wine to give himself time to think.

"Thomas, I get the feeling that things are about to get hot around here and I need to know what you know about this." I said giving him a flat look.

"Harry, I can't tell you anything." He said looking almost apologetic and maybe a little scared at the same time.

"Can't or won't?" I said flatly.

"Harry, there are some things that vampires don't talk about and the royal blood lines is one of them. To tell a mortal about them is the one cardinal sin that would turn all of the courts after you. Even if I wanted to, the fallout could cause an all out war between the courts and humanity. You have to understand that the courts have a fragile truce. With the house of Raith still reeling from the incident in the deeps we have just enough people to deter other courts from coming after us, but not enough to go into an all out war." He said quietly.

My mind was spinning, what could be so important about the blood line that it would set the courts against each other and humanity? I needed more answers and I knew I wasn't going to get them from Thomas. I couldn't put him in a position where he had all three courts hunting him. He just recently got into the good graces of the White Court and more importantly he was my brother. I couldn't put a target on his back.

"Okay, then can you tell me what would happen if a Red Court vampire married one of the royal blood line?" I asked.

"I can tell you that it would make him very powerful in their court, scary powerful." Thomas said taking a larger drink of the expensive wine.

"How would the Black Court figure into this?" I asked having already had an idea that what he said was the case.

"The Black Court is the only court that can turn half reds. If they find a red court member who hasn't turned yet, they can turn them to the black court." He said. "If the Black Court had one of the royal blood lines, a pure specimen, then they could use that person to gain leverage and power in the other courts. It could break the fragile balance between the courts." He said.

"They would gain leverage over the other courts?" I said incredulously.

"Don't ask how but yes." He said. "Harry, you can't let the Black Court get their hands on her, kill her if you have to but the consequences of the Black Court getting a pure royal would have far reaching ramifications and none of them would be good for humanity. Think dark ages Harry. If Marva turned her she would be scary powerful and under Marva's complete control." Thomas said refilling his glass.

This wasn't good. I didn't have any idea why but somehow this girl was akin to a genetic lottery ticket for the darker vampire courts. To the reds she would be an instant ticket up the social ladder, but to the Black Court she would be a tool for domination of the other courts and humanity.

"If she's so dangerous, why is the white court sitting on its hands watching this play out?" I asked quietly giving my brother a hard stare. I'm a wizard and when I want to give a hard stare, it can hurt.

"You have to remember, we breed to get new members of our court. We can't simply go around biting people and making them one of our numbers." Thomas said returning my stare with one of his own. He was pretty good at giving hard looks, as pretty as he was I knew how dangerous he could be and didn't take it lightly.

"In the Raith Deeps we lost an entire house of our court and a lot of members of other houses. We aren't as strong as we were and consequently can't throw our weight around as much as we used to. It's a fact we don't like to advertise." He said gulping his drink.

"So, the other Red Court entourage may be here for backup?" I asked.

"More likely, someone is planning on taking her for himself. If that happens, during the fighting it's likely that Marva will make her move and take the girl in the confusion. It's her style, and then she can lay waste to the reds on her way out." Thomas said with a look of distain on his face.

"Any idea when this will happen?" I asked quietly.

"Like I told you before, they didn't check with us before entering our territory. I didn't know the Red Court had anyone in town until you told me about it. Laura won't be happy when she hears about this." Thomas said shaking his head.

"So there's nothing you can tell me about the bloodline thing?" I said probing.

"No! Don't ask me about that again, Harry. You're my brother but there are some secrets we both have to keep from each other and this is one. Please don't ask again." Thomas said and his eyes took on a silvery shine.

"I understand…" I said giving him a thoughtful look. I wasn't happy that he was keeping this from me but if it would cost him and his court their lives, I could live with a little ambiguity.

"Just one more question, how can the Black Court turn a half Red Court vampire? I thought once bitten and infected the person was locked into whatever court they were infected by?" I asked.

"Normally that's the case and a Black Court member can't turn a full Red Court or White Court member because they've already transformed and their biochemistry has changed. But when the person is only infected and hasn't fed, meaning drained another human and taken a life, then they still have most of their humanity intact. Their soul if you will. That's what the Black Court feeds on, that life energy. Once the victim is dead, the Red Court virus dies, leaving the Black Court virus keeping them animated but not alive. Hence, the term undead." He said with a look of distain.

"So in the Black Courts hands she's a weapon of mass destruction and in the Red Court she's simply two giant steps up the social ladder." I said rolling it over in my mind.

"She would be very powerful in the Red Court as well, hence the change in status." He said giving me a knowing look. "The other thing you have to consider is now that all three courts know she's out there, she'll always have a target painted on her back until someone claims her, until she is a full court member." Thomas said shaking his head.

"I know you don't want to hear this Harry, and I know you'll reject it, but you have to know that the truly kind thing to do would be to kill her before she's turned. Once that happens, she'll become a monster of epic proportions and one you'll live to regret. Also until she's turned, they will always hunt her, she won't be safe anywhere and St. Giles isn't equipped to deal with the kind of attention she'd bring with her." He said giving me a serious look.

"So you're saying I should put her down like a rabid animal?" I said feeling my anger beginning to swell in my stomach.

"Brother, I'm saying it may be the best thing for her. Think about it, do you think she'd want to live like that? Does she strike you as the type who wants to spend eternity hunting and killing, feeding on human flesh or souls?" He asked looking at me with a serious look on his face.

"She is a veagan…" I said feeling the wind taken out of my sails. He was right, that's the last thing Megan would want, but to simply kill her went against everything I stood for. I was supposed to save the girl, not assassinate her.

Maybe by killing her, I would be saving her from the horrors of her possible futures, but where's the happy ending in that? Not to mention it wouldn't endear me to the Senator and making an enemy like that wouldn't do me any favors. That's all I need, the secret service and FBI watching me day and night.

"I know what you're thinking, she's young and it's a shame but sometimes you have to make hard decisions. It's not anyone's first choice but it's the right one." He said compassionately.

The right thing… There's a headstone in Graceland cemetery with my name on it waiting for my date of death to be inscribed on it that says, "He died doing the right thing." It was meant as an insult and I was already supposed to be under it, but I had a way of making other choices and screwing up bad guys plans. What my brother said was right enough and if she's that big of a deal there's no reason to think they wouldn't hound her until someone got to her, assuming she didn't give into the hunger while on the run, fighting for her life. Still I wasn't a murderer and I wouldn't let fate play such a horrible hand to someone so young. There had to be another way… Think Harry.

If the Red Court got her out of Chicago I'd have next to no chance to get to her without a legion of wardens helping me breach a Red Court strong hold. If the Black Court got to her, between Marva and her new super weapon I'd have less odds of getting to her. Either way if she turned, I'd have no choice but to kill her and I wasn't going to let that happen. So I had to get to her before either side got her out of Chicago or turned her. Simple right?


	12. Of Pixies and Pizza

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 12

As I drove home I kept mulling things over in my head. I had a problem, well three to be exact. Each was another group that possibly wanted to kill me. One tried to kill me twice now. None of the three would mind seeing it happen and would likely have paid for the privilege of watching if not getting a few good shots in on me before I expired. I took extreme exception to the thought of letting that happen.

One tried to kill me twice now I'd and already and put a good dent in their numbers. Honestly, it was the third group, Marva and her entourage that worried me. The last time I'm mixed it up with her I almost lost my hand and I still had the scars from that encounter. The up-side is that I had learned to play the guitar, much to the protest of my neighbors and close friends during the early learning stages. I still wasn't up to playing Cliffs of Dover (see Eric Johnson) but could manage a mean Stairway to Heaven, some Santana and a few Eagles tunes.

I wasn't sure how I'd track Marva or Meagan. I needed something reliable to give me real time updates, something I didn't need to concentrate on to keep me up to date with their movements and activities so I did the only thing a wizard could do. I called Pizza 'Spress.

I could feel their presence as soon as the smell of the five large pizzas filled the back yard of my apartment. I didn't draw a circle. I didn't even put power into my words.

"I require the presence of General Toot toot." Was all that I had to say.

With a rush of air and a small explosion of light the nimbus of the now foot and a half tall fae streaked down from the air about ten feet above me and stopped about a foot away from my face.

"General Toot toot reporting as requested by the honorable Za-Lord!" He intoned dramatically with a smart salute. I returned the salute with a grave look on my face.

"General Toot toot, at ease." I said as he relaxed visibly.

"Hi ya Harry, I was close by when you called." He said looking sidelong at the pizza, the aroma seeming to swirl almost visibly around his face.

"I see. I have a proposition for you and your men." I said looking meaningfully at the pizzas. "This is only half the payment, the other half will be delivered when the service I seek is completed."

"The Za-Lord's guard is at your service!" He said now looking fully at the array of Italian masterpieces.

"There are three groups of vampires in Chicago that I'm interested in, two Red Court and one Black Court. I need you to keep an eye on them and let me know what they are doing. Specifically one group is holding this young lady hostage." I stuck the photo of Megan I had gotten from Murphy on the wall above the pizzas.

"I need to know if they try to move her or if the other groups of vampires head to where they are holding her."

"You don't want us to eliminate them for you sir?" Toot said with mixed insult and relief in his voice.

"No, there's no sense in putting yourself or your people at risk. In fact I'm ordering you to not do just that. Keep a safe distance from them and don't let them see you or get close enough to capture any of you. Just watch and listen, if they notice you, leave. Simply keep watch and report any movements or information you hear about the girl or the vampires plans to me, is that understood?" I said looking around the back yard. Many fairies were now visible, some just pin points of light, others anywhere from an inch to four inches tall.

"Understood Sir!" Toot said, turning to face the growing multitudes of fairies in my back yard. "This is going to be dangerous work. I won't order any of you to do this. However for those of you that has the courage to take up this task, step forward and claim your pizza!" He said as if giving the speech from Brave Heart. The back yard erupted in a shrill roar of combined tiny cheers as toot held up a large slice of pizza while the rest disappeared in a blur of light and flying sauce.

"Harry, can we talk, in private?" Toot said sheepishly in my ear.

His question was simple enough but it sort of put me off balance. Had I asked too much of the little folk? I know pizza goes a long way and what I asked was supposed to be simply information gathering, but these were red and black court vampires we were talking about.

I led Toot inside and closed the doors as the gorged fairies lazed in the back yard with their stomachs extended. With the door closed we went into my living room. I sat in one of the high backed chairs and Toot landed on the coffee table.

"What's on your mind General Toot toot?" I asked in a formal voice.

"You can just call me Toot when the troops aren't around Harry." Toot said. His face still too serious for a wylde fae. It just didn't look right on his normally carefree face. The tuft of yellow hair was now pulled back into a long pony tail that trailed down his back. He wore a light green tunic under the dark brown plastic that must have once been a peroxide bottle at one point in its existence, now worn as a breastplate and the two crossed envelope openers over his back. His green nimbus took on a pinkish color as he faced me.

"What's on your mind Toot?" I asked sitting on the couch while he hovered just over the coffee table.

"Well Harry, I know you wouldn't ask about all those vampires if you didn't think you'd have to fight them." He said looking at his feet while silver and golden shimmers fell from his beating wings.

"Yeah it may come to that Toot. But I need your information so that I know what they are up to and maybe avoid a fight or just pick a small one if possible." I said.

"Harry, as the General of the Za-Lords Guard, I need to protect you. So we want in on this fight Harry." He said looking at me bravely, his little hands on his hips and his nimbus glowing brighter.

"Look, Toot…" I started and the little fairy cut me off.

"Harry, we have to. If you died, we'd have, you know, failed as your guard and… We'll be laughing stocks not to mention the pizza would stop…" He said making his case plain.

"Look Toot, nobody should take you and the Za-Lord's Guard lightly. Who was it that killed the rogue Lady of Summer and saved my world from an ice age? Who else do you know who can claim such a feat?" I said honestly. Okay I'd orchestrated the attack and it was a surprise attack using iron box cutters, which is toxic to the Fae, but it was the little guys who did it. I just organized them and told them when to strike.

"Well, there is that." He said looking brighter. "If we can kill her, then some vampires should be easy!"

I had to play this right. I didn't want to hurt the little guys feelings but I couldn't send a troop of fairies to their deaths either, after all they were dedicated to me so it was my responsibility to keep them safe.

"Not so fast General, I mean Toot toot. These guys are dangerous, old vampires and there are a lot of them around right now. Maybe I can use the guard in another fight later, but right now it's just too dangerous, this isn't the fight you want to be in on." I said flatly.

"But Harry…" He said looking up at me expectantly.

"These troops are under your command and as their leader it's your job to make sure they are safe and only go into battles they can win. I don't want to lose one of your numbers if it can be avoided. You're too valuable an asset to me to let any of you die over something like this." I said firmly.

"Look the information you are getting for me could mean the difference between me and my friends living or dying. It could mean the difference between the girl being saved or taken away to become a monster. What you are doing may not be as glamorous as going into battle with monsters, but you have to understand it's extremely important. I couldn't do what I do without the help of you and your men." I said fudging it a little bit.

"Really?" He said looking at me with wonder in his eyes.

"Toot toot, wars are won or lost on information. You have, over the years, given me the information I needed to make decent plans and make them work. If I didn't have you and the guard getting me that information I'd have to guess or go with a less reliable means of gathering information. You and your men are very important to me. That's why I make sure you have pizza every week, it's that important to me. Not to mention my house has never been cleaner and better stocked, which I greatly appreciate, by the way." I said.

"Really? So we're like your secret agents then?" he said thinking hard.

"Exactly like that and I can't think of anyone that would be better at it than you and your group." I said honestly.

"Wow… I never thought about it like that before Harry." He said with a big grin spreading over his face.

"Don't get me wrong, I'll need you in another fight some day, but I want to make sure it's the right one, geared to your special talents." I said seriously. "I know you and the Guard are formidable warriors, but for this mission, I really need you to concentrate on keeping an eye on these guys and letting me know what their up to so I know when to move on them." I said.

"Don't worry Harry, we won't let you down!" He said his nimbus growing brighter and a lighter shade of gold.

"I didn't think you would, General." I said giving him a smile.

"If you need to find me I'm going to be heading over to Murphy's house, let me know as soon as they find out where the Black Court and other Red Court groups are located." I said.

"Will do Sir!" he said giving me another sharp salute, which I returned soberly.

With that he simply disappeared with a pop and minor explosion of gold and silver fairy dust.

I sat and thought for a moment about what Toot had said. It was true that they did help take out the Queen of Summer but it was a surprise attack and they had Iron, which to a fairy is like superheated steel mixed with arsenic and a very corrosive acid. However they did face her and cut her to ribbons and that took guts, a lot of guts. They weren't normally the bravest of creatures but evidently Toot was looking to claim another victory for his troops. Maybe I had taken them for granted?

Although I dismissed the idea out of hand, if they were ready for the fight and wanted to fight, they could be very dangerous. Think of an angry nest of wasps coming after you with box cutters instead of stingers. That and they were damned fast when they wanted to be. If you had 10 to 20 of them come at you at once, not only would it be near impossible to keep your eye on one long enough to target them, but the others could have you dismembered before you had time to swing. Maybe I should consider his request when I had more time to think and maybe train them.

Where had I been the last year or so? Molly and now Toot Toot, they were growing so fast and coming into their own. Although I've never been a parent, I think I now have a greater appreciation for what they feel like when their kids go off to college.

I grabbed Mouse and we headed out back to clean up the pizza boxes and let Mouse do his thing. Once Mouse and the pizza boxes were squared away, I made sure my wards were reset and then we climbed into the truck. The drive to Murphy's house was fairly fast and quiet as the traffic was light and I hit most of the lights green for once.

I was surprised to find the house quiet as I let myself in the back door. Molly was sitting at the kitchen table talking with Butters. They looked up at me over their coffee cups as I came in.

"So how did it go?" Molly asked as she started to get up.

"What do you need?" I said waving at her to sit as I headed for the coffee maker.

"I was going to do that for you, boss." She replied.

"I can get my own coffee thank you, and it went well. I have my spies out looking for the vampires as we speak. I hope to get a status report soon." I said pouring the hot black liquid into a mug that read CPD with the emblem of a badge displayed in dark blue and gold.

"Spies?" Butters asked.

"Don't ask, it's a long story." I told him.

"Well after Butters got here Lash and Murphy decided to head for bed quietly." Molly said with a smirk.

"Good, they need their rest. Although they are both too stubborn to admit they need it." I said joining them at the table sitting across from Butters with Molly at the head of the table.

"I admire strong women but these two are defiantly both alpha females." Butters said with a grin.

"Tell me about it." I said giving him a knowing smile.

"So, what? I'm chopped liver?" Molly said her cheeks getting a little flushed.

"You're the Libra version of an Alpha female Molly. You are strong and pig headed but you still take the time to look at both sides of an argument. I like to think I had something to do with that but I'm betting that your dad had more to do with it than I." I said giving her a wink, turning he cheeks fully red.

"Well if by that you mean I'm more reasonable, then I accept your compliment." She said sitting up and lifting her chin as she sipped her coffee.

"So have you had any time to study or practice your magic while babysitting these two?" I asked.

"Not really but I've been working on something for a while now. Tell me what you think." She said as she pulled her wand from her belt and stepped back onto the hard wood floor with the sugar jar.

She poured a small circle of sugar around her and touched it, bringing it to life. I could feel her draw power, but just barely. She concentrated and held out her wand then broke the circle mumbling under her breath and a kitten appeared on the table. It was solid black with blue eyes and it had fine fur and tiny whiskers. The kitten twitched its tail and meowed looking from Butters to me.

"Wow that looks so real!" Butters said. "The meow sounds so lifelike!"

"Pet it." Molly said beaming.

Butters reached out and gently pet the kittens fur that bent at his touch.

"Wow, it's so soft. That's really cool!" Butters said.

I reached out and touched the kitten's soft fur as it started to purr.

"You added a tactile element too? That's very impressive grasshopper." I said with a raised eyebrow.

"I've been working on that for a while. It's really hard but now that I'm getting the hang of it, it's coming a lot easier. I still have a lot of work to do on it though." Molly said obviously proud of herself.

Molly waved her wand and the kitten disappeared and Molly sat down looking tired.

We talked for about an hour and Butters decided it was time to head home. Molly cleaned up and then making sure the computer and TV were unplugged, made herself comfortable on the couch, while I took up residence in the chair next to Lash's bed.

I was just about to doze off when I saw gold and silver sparks appear in the air between me and Lash's bed. I sat up and with a pop, Toot toot appeared in the air in front of me.

"Harry, can we talk?" he said quietly looking over his shoulder at Lash's sleeping form under the covers.

"Let's go into the kitchen." I said quietly and tip toed into the kitchen.

"What do you have for me?" I asked.

"Well, we found one group of Red Court vampires with the girl where you said she was. We found another group in a big pretty building. It's a place called the Madison. They are taking up a whole floor for just the six of them." He said. "We have looked for the Black Court vampires but nobody's found them yet. We'll keep looking." He said with a slight frown.

"Good, the Black Court may not be in town or may not have found a place to stay yet. Keep looking and keep an eye on the other two groups and let me know if they go anywhere." I said sleepily.

"Will do Harry. Oh by the way their keeping the girl on the third floor in a corner room. She looked okay but we just kept an eye on her like you said. She's pretty Harry." Toot toot said with a shy grin.

"Perfect, let me know if anything changes of if you find the Black Court. Don't be afraid to wake me up if I fall asleep either. I need to know as soon as possible." I said leaning back in my chair.

"Will do Harry." And with that he disappeared.

I waited for another five minutes before mustering up the will to get up and head back into Lash's room. I leaned back into the overstuffed arm chair watching Lash sleep as my own breathing slowed and deepened. The last thing I remember before I fell asleep was Mouse yawning curled at the foot of the bed.


	13. Bringing it all together

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 13

**Authors Note:** I'm really sorry it's taken this long to update, but things have been hectic. So I wanted to thank you for bearing with me and reading my story. I do appreciate all who read my stories, it's very gratifying and any feedback you care to offer is appreciated. I just hope you enjoy the rest of the story.

I slept fitfully, dreams came some as a blur of nonsense images half remembered, others complete and vivid. Some elements of my past and the current situation somehow weaved themselves into a coherent story while I simply observed the actions take place. I saw my first apprentice die at the hands of a werewolf and then Susan pushing past me at Bianca's masquerade party, only to dissipate into a mist as she pressed into the crowd. Then I saw myself on a dinosaur directing it to destroy legions of the living dead and then things shifted to the Raith depths where human and vampires alike were destroyed by large, enhanced ghouls before the place blew up. Then just before I woke I saw Megan's face looking at me, desperate and lost, begging for my help.

"Harry… You said to wake you if anything changed. Harry, are you awake?" Toots voice broke into my consciousness as my heavy eye lids began to part and the early morning sunlight stung my eyes.

"Yeah, I'm awake Toot." I said giving the room a quick scan. Lash was sitting up in her bed with a gentle smile looking at me and the pixie like it was a scene from a Rockwell painting.

"Well, we've found the people you asked about. The second Red Court group, I told you about last night and we found the Black Court group just after sunrise. They are easier to find during the day." He said with a pleased smile on his face.

"Outstanding Toot, where is the Black Court at?" I asked suddenly awake and wiping the sleep out of my eyes.

"They are in a basement of an old building that nobody uses anymore. I've been meaning to ask you about that Harry. Why do humans build buildings then not use them and just leave them empty? It seems like a bad use of time and building stuff, if nobody's going to use it…" He said scratching his head.

"Long story Toot, they planned to use it or did use it for a while, and then things changed. Companies closed, people got other jobs and went to work someplace else." I said trying to explain as best I could in simple terms.

"Toot, you'll find humans are short lived and capricious. That has much to do with their behavior." Lash said with a knowing look.

"Oh… I see. That makes a lot of sense." Toot said giving Lash a thankful look.

"So says the mortal wizard recovering from her injuries." I said with a smirk.

"It doesn't change the fact that compared to the Fae and other races, you're life even as a wizard will be but a space of a time compared to their longevity." Lash said a little defensively.

"I get it, but capricious?" I said.

"Comparatively speaking yes, but that's because WE mortals have to squeeze as much living as we can into the precious time we are given." She said with a grin and a wink that made me blush and Toot's nimbus turned a light shade of pink.

"I see…" Toot said with a scholarly look on his face that was as out of place as horns on a bunny rabbit.

"So where is this building?" I asked turning back to Toot.

"It's down by the big water and surrounded by a bunch of other smelly buildings, most don't look like they get used much either." He said. The faeries are good at finding things but since they tend to spend most of their time in the Nevernever they aren't really good about getting addresses.

"Is there a name on the building or some way that I could tell it from the others, besides having the undead in its basement?" I asked trying to sound diplomatic.

"I thought you'd ask so I grabbed this paper from upstairs in one of the rooms." He said offering me an old rumpled and faded sheet of paper. At closer inspection it was a delivery receipt and had the buildings address and a list of materials shipped. From the list it appeared that the company was a manufacturing company and had received a list of chemicals and parts. I wasn't sure if the list of materials could help or not, but the address was more than I'd hoped for.

"That's great Toot. It's just what I needed. If we move on the black court before they are up and about we will stand a better chance of taking them down. Worst case, if we have to make a break for it, we can escape into daylight and they won't be able to follow." I said scratching my head trying to draw a plan together.

Okay, so I knew who the players were and where they could be found. The question now was who to hit first, when and where. Then there was the additional problem of Lash and Murphy being hurt, which didn't help matters. I had to come up with a plan and didn't have a lot of time or resources to throw at it.

"Good work Toot, you and your men are doing a wonderful job! Keep an eye on them and let me know if anything changes." I said getting up out of the chair.

"Will do Harry!" He said and vanished with a pop.

"Harry what was that?" Murphy's voice came from the hallway.

"What was what?" I asked giving her an innocent look as I turned to see her standing in the hallway, pulling the door open all the way.

"I'm not crazy. I heard voices and peeked in the door and saw something hovering in the air in front of you. You talked to it and it told you where the vampires were." She said with a puzzled look on her face. "I want to know what it was and how it got into my house."

"Technically it's a pixie and it flew in." I said in a reasonable voice.

"He's a Pixie? Like faerie dust and mischief pixies?" She asked.

"Yeah, he works with me on occasion." I said pointing to the glittery dust on the floor next to the bed that was evaporating quickly.

"They aren't going to start hanging around my house now are they?" She asked looking around as if waiting to catch a glimpse of one out of the corner of her eye.

"No… Probably not. Unless they like you." I said giving it some thought.

"Harry!" Murphy said with a growl in her voice.

"I don't control the faeries. I just work with some now and then." I said.

"They aren't going to start moving stuff around my house now are they?" Murphy asked worried.

"No, they usually only hang around if you really tick them off or leave food out for them."

"Next time please ask before inviting faeries or magical creatures into my home." Murphy said with a slightly frazzled look on her face as she limped into the kitchen.

"Right then, no faeries without prior approval." I said pretending to write it down on an imaginary note pad.

Murphy was up and getting ready for work as Molly and I made breakfast. Sausage and potatoes were cooking when there was a knock on the door. Murphy came out of her room in her slacks and white button up shirt and socks and gave me a funny look.

"Expecting company?" She said as there was a second, louder set of raps on her door.

"None that use the door." I said moving to my duster to draw my blasting rod as Murphy pulled a 45 out of the coat closet next to the door.

"One second." She said as she released the safety and cocked the hammer as she slowly turned the door knob and opened the door.

"Karin, how are you? You look lovely as ever." Said a puzzled but nonplussed Carlos Ramirez. "Do you welcome all your guests with a large caliber hand gun?" He asked giving her a dazzling smile.

"Carlos? What the hell are you doing here?" She asked lowering the weapon and waving him inside, her cheeks blushing as her posture suddenly became better.

"Harry called in for backup, which has never happened before. So I rushed over as soon as I could. When he wasn't at home I thought to try here and the Carpenters before calling in a search party." He said stepping into the house looking around, taking in the Murphy abode.

"So Harry was expecting you?" She asked giving me a dirty look.

"I didn't call for backup. I just thought you could use some excitement in your life." I said putting my blasting rod away and walking down the hall to shake his hand.

"Call it what you like but when Harry Dresden asks another warden to go along on one of his little adventures, you either hide well or grab every weapon you have then come quickly before you miss all the action." He said with a contagious laugh.

"Carlos? Is that you?" Molly said from the end of the hall with a sheepish grin.

"It's me Miss Carpenter." He said with a grin. "You've changed since I last saw you." He said approvingly.

"She does that." I said giving him a warning glance.

"We were just making breakfast, are you hungry?" She asked, turning to head back into the kitchen.

"I could eat. With the time difference it's still pretty early for me." He said heading down the hall to the kitchen.

Murphy secured the gun and quickly headed back into her bedroom to finish getting ready.

I handed Warden Ramirez a hot cup of coffee as I joined him at the dining table.

"What did Luccio tell you?" I asked as he sipped his coffee.

"She said you had two or three groups of vampires in your city and one took a high profile hostage." He said giving me his serious look.

"That's partly true. The hostage is a Senator's daughter and she's been infected by the Red Court. From what I've heard she could be very powerful both politically and otherwise if fully turned. The Black Court is there to claim her and take her for themselves, in which case she would be even more powerful and basically Marva's puppet. We can't let that happen." I said flatly.

"If she's already infected by the Red Court what does Marva think she'll do with her?" Carlos asked.

"I have it on good authority that the Black Court can still turn her until she's fully turned." I told him as I added more sugar to my cup.

"I didn't know they could do that." He said with a worried look on his face.

"I didn't either until recently, evidently she's still human enough for the Black Court to kill her and the Red Court virus and turn her to the Black Court." I told him.

"Like the Black Court wasn't scary enough to begin with." Carlos said shaking his head. "Any idea how to get her away from them?"

"Getting her away from the Red Court isn't going to be the hard part, it's keeping her and getting them to leave her alone that will be the tough part. As long as she's alive they'll be hunting her." I said sadly.

"So you don't have many options, give her to them or kill her." He said. "This doesn't sound like your typical Dresden plan."

From the other room I could hear Murphy's cell phone go off, then her muffled voice answering it.

"It's not the plan I had hoped for and hopefully we can come up with another option, but until then we have to go with plan B." I said tasting stomach acid in my mouth as I said it.

"Not necessarily." Lash said from behind me.

"Miss Lash! Good to see you." Carlos said looking up from the table, beaming at Lash. "If you have another idea, I'd love to hear it."

"Harry, that was the senator." Murphy said from the doorway to her room. "He needs to talk to you and will call you on the house phone. He sounded upset." She said stepping into the hallway. Her hair and makeup were now done properly and she was wearing a pair of black sensible shoes and her badge was prominently displayed next to her belt buckle.

"Did he say what he wanted?" I asked.

"No he just said he had to talk to you ASAP." She replied as the house phone on the wall next to me began to ring.

"I got it." I said, turning to the phone and yanking it from the cradle.

It was the senator and over the course of a brief and heated conversation I got the impression that he needed to meet with me and it had something to do with his daughter and wife. I couldn't make out exactly what he was trying to say but he was very upset and needed to see me. So I gave him directions to someplace we could meet in private away from the mainstream eyes of the public.

I asked Lash to elaborate on what she meant when she said we didn't necessarily have to kill the girl to get her out of this mess. She briefly outlined a simple, yet elegant plan that could work. The more I thought about it the more I liked it. Lash, Molly, Carlos and I hashed out a few rough spots in the plan and decided to discuss it more after I met with the Senator.

I made a call to Mac and asked if he could meet us at his pub, so we could have a private meeting there. It didn't take much convincing once he heard there was a young woman in trouble and her father was a senator. Mac had a big heart and was a stand up guy. Although he was a man of few words, his actions spoke volumes about who he was.

As the truck rolled into the alley way the building walls reverberated and the engine sounded like something between a hurricane and symphony. We found a parking spot in the small and empty lot and made our way into the bar whose sign read Closed.

The door to McNally's pub was open and inside was a tired but amicable Mac and a quite shake senator sitting at the bar with a cup of coffee and a bottle of Mac's latest microbrew. He was favoring the brew at the moment.

"Mac, thanks for opening so early. I really appreciate it." I said as I sat at the bar. Mac just nodded as Carlos took the stool next to me. Carlos waved at Mac and two bottles of Mac's latest microbrew appeared in front of Carlos and I, the lids laying next to the bottles. Mac gave me a quizzical look.

"We're fine, thanks again. We'll leave a big tip." I said giving him a grateful smile.

"Eh." Mac said as he grabbed his clipboard with an inventory list on it and headed into the back room.

"Harry, who's your friend?" The senator asked, keeping his head down as he suckled at the beer.

"He's a good friend and we work together. He's a wizard too, his name's Calos Ramirez." I said pointing to the gentleman in his mid twenties by my side.

"He looks young." Senator Forthright said to the bar.

"Looks can be deceiving." I said. "Now what brings us down here?" I asked getting to the point.

"They took her." He said not looking away from the bottle.

"Megan?" I said. We knew that, "I have people watching her she's not moved since we last spoke."

"No damnit, my wife. Those monsters have My Wife!" he said slamming the bottle down on the surprisingly resilient bar top. It should have left a dent or at least a scratch in the varnish, but I didn't see any… I'd have to ask Mac about that later.

"When did this happen?" I asked incredulously.

"Sometime last night as best I can tell. I heard a noise and went to investigate. As I came down the stairs something hit me in the face, like slime. I went to wipe it off and got all woozy and passed out. When I woke up a few hours ago she was gone." He said, his eyes glistening with tears.

"Sounds like the Red Court if you ask me." Carlos chimed in. I gave him a, "Shut up and let me handle this" look and he rolled his eyes and sipped his beer.

"That's who took Megan right?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's them. I think I know why they took her and if I'm right she's in no danger." I said reassuringly.

"No danger, like Megan is in no danger but can't ever come home? Do you mean that kind of no danger?" He half yelled back at me.

"Calm down John, they won't do that to her. They don't have a reason to do that and they have every reason to leave her untouched." I said calmly.

"They won't hurt her, because they need her whole and healthy to give to their king." I said rationally.

"Really and why's that? She's not the virgin!" He said mockingly.

"But she is their offering, their sacrifice." I said watching him as his head jerked up to face me for the first time today.

"That kind of No Danger… Well isn't that good to know. So she's fine until she's given to their king. What then? Will he rip out her heart or just drink her blood?" He said sarcastically.

"He has to taste her blood to confirm your daughters royal bloodline." I told him calmly. "But they have to get her out of the city to do that and we aren't going to let that happen. There's a lot going on behind the scenes on this one and you have to trust me on this." I said firmly looking into his terrified face.

"Look I know it's not in vogue for a politician to love his wife but call me old fashioned. I've never cheated on her and would do anything to keep her safe. Is there any way I could buy them off? Maybe trade political favors and foreign aid to get her back? I could call in the National Guard or turn Homeland Security loose on them?" He said. "We have to get her back!" he half cried half yelled.

"Don't worry. We have a plan." I said resolutely.

"You have a plan. Two wizards… My God I must be going nuts." He said tipping his bottle high as he drank the last of his beer.

"Look, there are two rival factions in town each wanting your daughter. If they took your wife they are planning on moving soon and when they do, we grab her." I said calmly.

"Assuming you can get past their security and the other two factions and get out cleanly." He said with a smirk.

"This isn't our first rodeo." I said firmly. "We'll get her out."

"What's to stop me from calling the FBI and getting them to raid his place and getting her back?" He said reasonably.

"Well first off, there are his guards, some vampire, some human and all heavily armed. Do you want to put your daughter in the middle of a fire fight?" I asked.

"Now let's assume you succeed in getting her back. How long do you think it will take before the next in line comes to call with more 'people' and more guns? How many times do you want to go through this? How many times do you want to risk your wife and daughters lives?" I said giving him a firm look.

"So what's your plan?" He asked point blank in an authoritarian sort of way.

"We go in before they move her and kill her in front of them, grab your wife and run like hell." I said calmly. "Once your daughter is dead, they will have no need for your wife so that part of the plan should go easily."

The conversation got much louder for a while. Eventually we were able to convince the senator to leave his wife and daughter in our hands. If we failed to get his wife back to him in 24 hours he was going to call in the marines and every law enforcement and intelligence agency with an acronym to get them back.

We did however get him to agree to help us with our plan but for it to work properly we had to call on someone with special abilities who I really hated to work with. John went home and Carlos and I headed downtown for our next appointment.

"Do you have an appointment?" The young capable woman asked from behind the receptionist desk.

"We have a standing appointment with Mr. Marcone. Just tell him Harry Dresden is here and it's important." I said in a calm and unyielding manner.

The young woman relayed my message and after what seemed like a long pause, followed by a brief conversation that confirmed what I looked like and that there was another person with me who had on a gray cloak and sword, she hung up.

"He said he'll be right with you Mr. Dresden. Won't you have a seat?" She said indicating a small private sitting area with a full coffee pot and a basket full of pastries.

Carlos and I grabbed some coffee and although I wasn't hungry I grabbed a pastry, just because I knew John Marcone was paying for it. True to his word we were shortly ushered down a hall and to a large set of glass double doors. The woman knocked twice and turned and left.

The doors to the office opened and there in the doorway stood Hendricks. Hendricks was a granite mountain of a man with thick stumpy legs and arms. He had a large round head sitting directly on his shoulders with no discernable neck.

Hendricks frisked us, took Carlos's sword, and then nodded to let us pass into the room.

John Marcone sat behind a ridiculously large carved desk. I'm sure it was a rare wood and the desk alone could buy half a suburban block of homes, but it didn't impress me any more than the man who sat behind it. He was Chicago's own personal crime lord and scumbag.

I sat down before being asked to and put my pastry and coffee on his desk as I pulled the chair closer to the desk. Marcone frowned and put the cup on a coaster as he glared at me.

"Harry Dresden, I see you're as polite as ever. The desk is new and very expensive. I'll thank you to not put your feet up. Now, what brings you to my office today?" He said putting the pastry on a napkin like a housewife with OCD.

"We've come to make you an offer, a deal if you will." I said giving him a mysterious look.

"Harry Dresden wants to make a deal with me? How quaint." He said sitting back in his chair. "What sort of deal Harry?"

"You do me a favor and my friend owes you a favor, it's just that simple." I said calmly.

"Well I'm afraid I don't know your friend here and so don't know what to think. Maybe you should be a little more specific." He said with a interested look in his eyes as the businessman in Johnny began to salivate.

"Not this friend, he's nobody for you to worry about. My other friend, Senator John Forthright would be the one to owe you the favor." I said calmly. Johnny's eyes lit up at the mention of the senator.

"I see. I've met the senator and played golf with him before and he wasn't interested in anything I had to say. What has changed his mind?" John asked smiling like a predator about to pounce on prey.

"John, really? Don't tell me the free baron of Chicago doesn't know what's going on in his own town! Didn't you know that a group from the Red Court has come to town and abducted and infected a young woman? That there is a second group of the same court and another from the Black Court also in town, and they're planning on causing a ruckus in your backyard. How is it that you didn't know any of this Johnny?" I asked with mock surprise. "I thought you were up on things Johnny, maybe you're slipping."

"Don't assume I'm not aware of what happens in this city Wizard!" Marcone spat, his cheeks turning red and angry. I could tell he knew some of what I had told him but at least part of it was news to him.

"So you sanctioned all of this did you?" I asked innocently.

"Of course I didn't! I heard about the red court taking the girl after the fact, and then I heard you were involved so I stayed out of it, assuming the great wizard Dresden could handle it. Now you're here asking for favors. Maybe it's not me who's slipping." He said giving me a cold look.

"Considering the insult and audacity of these groups I thought you may want to get a little payback and get a marker with the senator as a bonus." I said without flinching.

"What did you have in mind?" he asked, his interest perked.

We spent the next hour going over what Johnny's part in the plan would entail. I intentionally left him in the dark on a few matters like the Senator's wife being missing and what I planned on doing to get the girl back. I assumed he didn't need to know and was less likely to interfere with me if he didn't know what I was going to do ahead of time. It's the whole, better to ask forgiveness than permission sort of thing.

Before we left the office building where Johnny Marcone worked, I stopped and used the pay phone to make a few calls. I told the senator that the plan was in place and to sit tight. Then I called Murphy's house and told Molly that I'd need her help in a few hours and to get her gear together. I hated bringing her in on this but with Lash down and Murphy hurt, I couldn't bring them into this. Then I made one last call to an old friend whose help didn't come cheap, but I wasn't footing the bill and could use the help to make sure we got the women out safely. Once that was arranged all we had to do was prepare and wait.

"Are you sure this plan is going to work?" Carlos asked after a long silence as we drove through Chicago's late morning rush, heading back to my apartment.

"Sure, why shouldn't it?" I asked shocked that the brilliance of my plan wasn't apparent to my fellow warden.

"It just has a lot of holes and there are a ton of variables you aren't accounting for." He said sanely.

"I've learned its best not to over think these things. If you go in with a rigid plan and something goes wrong, it all falls apart. This way we know our objectives and if something goes sideways, we'll simply adjust and make it work." I said equally sanely.

"So we're doing this by the seat of our pants then?" He asked with a little disbelief in his voice.

"I wouldn't put it quite that way, but yes, we are a little flexible on the details. Trust me Carlos, it'll work!" I said reassuringly as I ran a light just turning red.

"If you say so…" He said in a less than convincing tone.


	14. Into the Black

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 14

All things considered I guess I shouldn't have been surprised an hour later when the door to my apartment opened and Lash lead Molly and Mouse into my home. I had asked Molly to come alone, making an excuse of running errands to get Lash to stay in bed while we were busy with the mayhem I had planned. However, Lash was smart and had seen through our ploy. So now our group was a little larger.

Once they were together we sat down and went over the plan, updating them on the events of this morning and changes to the original plan. There were questions and some heated debate but in the end we were left with few alternatives. So we set to the work of preparing for our upcoming fight.

Lash and Carlos set to work making potions as Molly and I went out into the city to start gathering materials we'd need.

It was a little after one in the afternoon when Molly and I returned to the apartment. As we came in we were greeted by a new arrival.

"Hey Harry, long time no see." He said without looking up from cleaning and reassembling a large caliber rifle with a ridiculously long barrel.

"Kincaid, glad you could make it." I said setting the arm load of bags on the coffee table next to where he was working.

"It looks like you have a real party in the making. Lash and Carlos filled me in on what you have in mind and I have to tell you it sounds a little risky." He said with a touch of reproach in his voice.

"Well desperate times…" I said unpacking my bags as Molly set another group of bags on the floor next to me.

"It's always desperate times with you Dresden." He said with a smirk.

"True, I do toss some work your way and at your prices you shouldn't be complaining." I said smugly.

"I have expenses and provide a unique service." He said giving me a sidelong glance.

"I don't know how much work you get aside from me, but with this job and the last few, you should have a good down payment on your own private island." I said pulling on latex gloves and then organizing the materials as I unpacked them.

"Who said I don't already have one? That and we can't all just lay claims to one and make it our own, like a wizard I know." He said.

We worked in silence for a little while and then Jared set his gun aside and took note of what I was doing.

"Um, Harry… Where did you get that?" He asked nervously.

"I have connections too." I said smugly as I continued to work.

"Harry, you're doing that wrong. Just stop what you're doing and move away slowly." He said in a serious tone that made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

"You just take care of your equipment and I'll do mine." I said firmly.

"Harry, that isn't play-dough and this isn't time armature hour. Unless you're trying to level this building, just stop." He said in his scary serious tone.

I wasn't one to be bullied and didn't take kindly to having my skills called into question, but in this case, the instructions I had received had been hurried and this wasn't something I wanted to leave to chance. So I slowly slid the pile of materials I was working with over to Kincaid and got up to go check on Lash and Carlos. Kincaid began feverishly pulling wires loose and shaking his head as I went down into my lab.

"You should have seen it, Harry hanging upside down on the broomstick yelling at the top of his lungs as he smashed into the oak tree. Good thing he was only ten feet in the air or he'd likely have killed himself." Bob chortled as Lash and Carlos giggled.

The room went as silent as a crypt as they noticed me halfway down the stairs.

The tables in the lab were filled with every piece of potion making equipment I owned and potions were bubbling and some smoking while others were being poured into various containers for use later.

"Next we should work on the camouflage potions." Carlos said in a serious tone, his cheeks burning red.

"Yeah, so how are things progressing down here?" I asked with an unintended edge to my voice.

"We are just about done Harry." Lash said with a guilty smile.

"Bob, no more stories or I'll store you in a trunk with nothing but farmer's almanac's and technical manuals. Do we understand each other?" I said firmly.

"Completely…" Bob said with a sigh.

"Lash, can I talk to you upstairs?" I asked quietly.

I closed the door to my bedroom and turned to Lash giving her a serious look.

"Harry? Do we have time for this right now? I'm game if you are." She said giving me a come-hither smile.

"Um, no. Look Lash, you're not in any condition to be going along on this one. I won't be able to concentrate on what I have to do if I'm worried about you." I said firmly.

"I appreciate your honesty, Harry. However, I have no intention on staying at home while you and Molly rush into the jaws of danger. I won't have it! I'm going and that's final." She said folding her arms under her breasts and lifting her chin defiantly.

In that instant I had a vision of Michael and Charity Carpenter having a similar discussion. How did he get Charity to stay home? I'd have to ask him later, but I was sure it had something to do with the will of God or him something similar. There was no way I could play that card, so I had to go with the truth.

"Lash, I'm not taking you into a fight when you're not 100%. That's why I called in Kincaid. We'll be fine, I need you to trust me on this one." I said firmly.

"No. I'm going. I'm not going to risk losing either of you. If something happened and I wasn't there I'd never forgive myself." She said as her toe started to tap on the rug and her eyes becoming glassy. I'm not a push over or easily swayed from a rational point of view, but a vulnerable woman on the verge of tears… It just wasn't fair.

"Look, I know you don't like it. I'd hate it myself and would probably be saying and doing what you are right now if the shoe was on the other foot. Still, I need to know you're safe and can't risk losing you when you're hurt. You need time to rest and get better. You powers are out of whack and you took some hard hits the other night. You shouldn't be out of bed much less facing three groups of vampires." I said honestly.

"Harry…" She said quietly.

"No listen to me. I know normally you're one of the most powerful and capable wizards I've met. I'd be happy to have you at my side if you were well. Just think, if I were hurt and my power was on the blink, would you take me on this mission?" I said honestly.

"That's not fair Harry and you know it!" She said with a mix of defiance, anger and understanding in her voice, as a small silver tear streaked down her cheek.

"I know it sucks, but it is what it is. I know how hard this is for you and would be for me. Just this once, I'm asking you, please, sit this one out, for me." I said quietly.

I felt lower than whale poop for having said it and the look on her face made me feel even worse. I had hurt her pride and was asking her to go against her instincts. I was asking her to sit on her hands while we went into harm's way. I could see the hurt on her face and the anger in the muscles of her jaw as another tear threatened to escape from the other eye. This was one of the hardest things I could ask of her, but rationally we both knew it was the right choice. That didn't mean we had to like it.

Finally we came up with a compromise, Lash would sit lookout in the truck but stay out of the fight. It wasn't what either of us wanted, but it was a deal we both could agree on.

Lash, looking crestfallen, went back down stairs to the lab while I joined Molly and Kincaid at the coffee table. Molly was working with a pile of wires and equipment under the close supervision of 'The Hellhound'.

"Now attach the red wire and crimp it into place." He said in a low quiet tone, watching her closely. Molly had her hair pulled back into a bun that highlighted her high cheekbones and making her eyes look a little larger. As she worked, her gloved hands and nimble fingers moved quickly and precisely.

"I've got it." Molly said as she moved her hands away slowly looking up at Kincaid with a dazzling smile.

"Very good Miss Carpenter, you seem to have a knack for this." Kincaid said giving the device a quick once over.

"Harry, couldn't you have gotten newer equipment?" He asked with a smirk.

"I could have, but having it go haywire on us wasn't something I was willing to risk. Wizards and remote controls don't mix." I said.

"Okay, if you say so." He said shaking his head.

Another hour went by as we bottled potions, loaded rounds into clips, charged our charms and bracelets and then packed up our gear for the fight to come. Finally, we were ready to move.

Before we left I made a call to John Marcone and let him know we were moving. He assured me that his part of the plan was already in motion and Phase One should be concluded fairly shortly. I had to grin as I hung up the phone, for once John Marcone being a sneaky bastard was working for me.

Kincaid, Molly and Lash drove the truck, mostly because Kincaid wouldn't be seen dead driving the blue beetle, but also because I didn't trust him to drive it. It had its quirks and didn't have the raw power of the truck, but it was mine and it was a trusted companion. Carlos, Mouse and I puttered off into the city in the little car.

We got there with a little over three hours of daylight left. I hoped we'd be done in less than an hour or we'd attract the attention of the local authorities and have a lot of explaining to do.

We parked a few blocks away and each of us carried a bag or duffel of one sort or another as we made our way through the decaying buildings and empty parking lots. We split into two teams, to scout the building.

Molly and Kincaid simply vanished under Molly's veil and Carlos cast an impressive veil over Mouse, me and himself. We circled the building looking for any alarms, defenses or guards, hexing any surveillance cameras we saw on this or the adjacent buildings.

We didn't see any sign of movement in the building until we got to the loading docks. There were two armed guards standing just inside, keeping an eye on parking lot for any unwanted guests. They were dressed in brown jump suits and carried automatic assault rifles and large caliber side arms.

Kincaid offered to deal with them but Carlos had already thought about this situation and came prepared. He pulled a mason jar out of his duffle filled with a yellowish bubbly liquid.

"Watch this, it's my own recipe." He said as he lobbed the jar into the concrete between the two guards.

The jar exploded and a yellow vaporous cloud quickly filled the area. The guards, hearing the breaking jar turned quickly and were enveloped by the cloud and simply crumpled to the ground.

"They'll be out for at least two hours." Carlos said obviously pleased with himself.

"That's the plan?" Kincaid said with a scoff. "Look you may be a warden and have experience with vampires and wizards, but let me give you a piece of advice that's let me live as long as I have. You Never, Ever leave someone alive who can sneak up behind you when you're going into a fight like this."

"They're just paid thugs." Carlos protested.

"They're paid thugs who would gladly kill you." Kincaid countered. "They work for the Black Court. You can't honestly tell me you have any sympathy for them?"

"We'll take their weapons and radios then tie and gag them so they don't alert anyone or come up behind us later." I said reasonably.

"It's your party, but I'm telling you they pose a liability." Kincaid said coldly.

"Good, then we're agreed." I said giving Carlos a warning glance.

The vapor took a few minutes to dissipate, even with the gust of wind I sent into the building, before we could move in and bind the guards. We tied them securely and the put a large wooden crate over them to keep them out of sight. Then we slowly moved forward into the building.

The floors were thick with at least a few years worth of accumulated dust and debris. So following the path of clean floor made by foot traffic wasn't too difficult and Mouse had no difficulty following the stench of decay left by the group that had passed by some hours ago. Although the building was dark we continued on under veils from our two resident experts, just to be safe.

As we neared the center of the building mouse stopped in his tracks and lowered on his haunches. I looked around through the slight haze of Carlos's veil and at first missed the two solitary, stationary figures flanking a doorway off to our right.

The room was filled with low walled cubicles and stands that had once held office equipment. I stared at the two figures in the shadows and they didn't move at all. They didn't shift their weight from one foot to the other or even seem to hardly breathe like one would expect from hired thugs.

"Reinfields?" Carlos asked in a hushed voice.

"They could be or they might just be thralls, hard to tell until you try to talk to one." I replied in barely a whisper. A thrall is a human who's mind is controlled by the vampires, like if they were in a deep hypnotic state and given instructions, which they follow to the letter. A Renfield on the other hand is similar to a thrall but their minds have been twisted beyond repair and have greater speed and strength than a normal human. Although it is possible to restore thralls to their normal selves once the vampire controlling them is dead or out of range, Renfields are beyond help and have the personality of a feral animal only nastier.

"So how do you want to play this?" Carlos asked quietly.

I was about to open my mouth to answer when two fast quiet clicks went off to my right as a red dot moved from one figure to the other and they both crumpled to the ground silently with large gaping holes in their heads.

"What the hell was that?" I said quietly, giving Kincaid a dirty look. I couldn't see Molly or tell what her reaction to his actions was, but as a sensitive wizard she can have bad reactions to people being killed near her.

"That was bullets taking out our pair of problems." Kincaid said with a smirk. "Problem solved. We don't have a lot of time to be discussing this in front of the enemy. It's done, let's move on." He said in his all business tone of voice.

"They could have just been thralls. We could have saved them." I said feeling my anger rush into my cheeks.

"Or they could have been Renfields and made a lot of noise as they came after us, in which case we would have had to kill them anyhow. This way our prey didn't get a heads up that we're here." He said reasonably.

"Just say something before you start shooting next time. Molly may have been able to tell us what they were." I said quietly shaking my head.

"Fine, my bad, let's move on." He said getting a little snippy.

We moved quietly and quickly over to the door the two had been guarding. A quick inspection revealed a set of old double doors now permanently open, their hinges rusted and broken, the doors resting on the stairs heading down into the basement.

"Just like old times." Molly said quietly.

"Be ready, weapons out. We have a good idea what to expect, but stay sharp. These vampires don't get to be old by being stupid." I whispered back to my companions. Mouse tensed and let out a low quiet growl as he sniffed the air. I drew my blasting rod and shook my shield bracelet from the under the cuff of my duster. Carlos drew his glock and quietly released the safety. I heard rustling from where Molly must have been behind me and to the right.

"You lead." I said poking Kincaid in the shoulder. "Watch for traps."

"You do the same and try not to trip down the stairs." He said giving me a smile.

"Molly, put the first one here across the first step." I said as the others turned to take note as we started down the stairs. Molly stopped and although I didn't see her I saw a thin wire attach to the wall and pull across the step leading to a black box about the size of half a loaf of bread that was covered by paper and other debris littering the stairs. Then we proceeded down the stairs.

We moved slowly and quietly, one step at a time. I could feel Molly's hand on my back as Carlos and I followed Jared Kincaid.

Every few steps we could hear a quiet hiss as a misty spray drifted down the stair well. About half way down, the mist reflected two red laser beams making an X in the stair well. Upon closer inspection there were two boxes, smaller and neater than the one Molly had set out, but every bit as deadly.

"What happens if we hex the box?" Molly asked quietly, her voice carrying a quiver of fear in it.

"Either it goes dead or Boom!" I said in a hushed whisper.

"Or we could just sneak around the beams." Carlos said reasonably.

"This is why you hired a professional. Kincaid said quietly as he pulled his back pack off his back and pulled two small mirrors attached to metal arms from one of the pockets. "This is a common hazard in my line of work." He said.

Quietly he angled the mirrors and attached their anchors to the wall, then slowly swiveled the mirrors into place, reflecting the laser light back at the devices.

"Moving on." Kincaid whispered quietly, obviously pleased with himself.

We followed slowly and another three steps down Carlos tapped Kincaid on the shoulder and we all stopped.

"Do you feel that?" He said quietly.

I reached out with my wizard senses and could barely feel a thrum of power.

"I feel it too." Molly said quietly. "It's a guarding ward. It feels strong too."

"Can you disable it?" I asked Carlos. I can take on trolls and just about anything from the nasty side of the street with sheer brute force no problem, but when it comes to subtle magic… Well let's just say it's not my strong suit.

"I should be able to, give me a minute." He said quietly, taking a deep breath and concentrating.

"Honestly…" Molly said a little exasperated. "Let me."

I could just barely feel her drawing power as she waved her wand and mumbled something too quiet to be heard. Then I could feel something like a spider web brush across my face as the thrum simply stopped and the ward dissolved.

"Good work grasshopper." I said impressed.

I felt her hand pat my backside before returning to the small of my back. I wanted to give her a glare or make a snide comment, but the action took me so completely by surprise I just decided to let it go and talk to her about "Bad touches" later.

The shadows were thicker here and only a little light filtered through the doorway to dimly light the stairs. By the time we were three quarters of the way down it was nearly completely dark. Molly tapped me on the shoulder and pressed a tube against my neck. I took the tube and squeezed a little of the home made salve into my eyes and then passed the tube to Carlos.

I blinked a few times as the ointment dissolved in my eyes, stinging a little as it coated them. A few seconds later the stair well was much brighter, as if lit by 60 watt bulbs. It was a concoction that Lash had mixed for us. It was simple enough to make and I had jotted the recipe down in my personal alchemical notebook as I'm sure it would be handy on other occasions as well.

Kincaid simply slipped on a pair of night vision goggles and slowly made his way to the landing.

The stairs opened into a set of hallways. One hallway continued on directly in front of us and another went off to the left and right. After a few sniffs Mouse pointed us to the right. The dust was lighter down here but we could still make out faint foot prints heading down that direction.

Molly stopped to set another trap, making sure everyone was aware of where the tripwire was set as she placed the smallish box off behind the wall of the other hallway. The fine line of low test, high tech fishing wire was nearly invisible even with our enhanced vision and knowing where to look.

She also took this time to pass out our home made hand grenades, which were small pint sized mason jars filled with liquid and either tacks or ball bearings and a core of a C-4 knock off, courtesy of John Marcone and company. The pins were pop-top can rings attached to a short piece of fishing line. We estimated the fuses should give us about two seconds from the time the 'pin' was pulled until the explosive went off.

Last time we dealt with the Black Court they were very inventive and I almost lost a hand over it. This time we weren't taking any chances.

About thirty feet down the hallway we came to a cloth barrier. It was basically a set of sheets stretched over the hallway. Mouse tensed and bared his teeth as he sniffed the air. This wasn't lost on Carlos or Kincaid as we all came to a stop about six feet from the sheets.

It was clever, our veils could hide us in the open, but we'd have to move the sheets to go any further down the hallway. For all we knew there could be bells attached to the other side or a Renfield standing guard.

I closed my eyes and stretched my senses down the hallway past the sheets. I immediately got a cold sickly feeling crawling up the back of my spine. Either there was a vampire close by or a lot of them a little farther off. Either way the feeling was unmistakable and very strong.

I felt Molly draw magic from behind me. It was subtle and she only drew a very small amount and whispered nearly inaudibly and a shimmering circle three feet wide appeared in the center of the sheets.

"Good work." I whispered behind me as Carlos and Kincaid took turns peering from side to side through the veiled sheets.

"It's one way, they can't see through from the other side." Molly whispered in my ear, to calm my fears.

We could make out one vampire standing near the curtains maybe six feet from the other side and there were strings attached to cans and bottles leading from various points on the curtain. Farther down the hallway we could see a small grouping of beds with occupants in varying states of decay and a couple of honest to god coffins.

Since we were standing in pitch darkness with a curtain between us and our prey, we dropped the veils.

Kincaid motioned at us and we all readied a grenade. He used his free hand to count us down from 3 and at 0 we all pulled the pins and slid our jars down the hall under the curtain, barely moving the curtain as they went.

Things got very hectic after this. Molly backed up several steps pulling her wands as Carlos pulled his sword and blasting rod and Kincaid produced a small assault rifle from his back, leveling it and releasing the safety in one smooth motion.

I had pulled my blasting rod and moved so I had a clear line of fire with Kincaid in the front and Carlos and I flanking him with Molly about ten feet behind us. Mouse crouched next to Kincaid, ready to pounce.

As the first of the grenades went off, Kincaid opened fire on the Vampire standing guard. Carlos let loose with a blast of wind that was a narrow cone shape from the tip of his blasting rod, tearing down the curtain and pushing the vampire back against the wall and down the hallway. I mumbled Forzare and sent a bolt of energy down the hallway taking part of the curtain with it like a comet. It slammed into the coffin in the middle of the room, splintering the wood and destroying a handle and tipping it over the edge of the platform it was set on, sending it tumbling to the ground landing on the lid.

The Grenades all went off within a split second of each other sending shrapnel and a fine mist of holy water all over the room. Howls of pain and rage echoed down the hallway as the vampires were rudely awoken from their slumber.

The mist burned the vampires like acid as their dazed smoking corpses rose from their beds. Most of those we could see were no more than six months old, as their corpses were well intact and still stiff. From behind us Molly, now veiled, sent more grenades sliding down into the room at the end of the hall.

Mouse charged down the hallway with a deep rumbling growl growing from deep in his chest as he launched himself at the first of the vampires to move towards us, while Kincaid quickly fired a couple of expertly aimed shots that shattered the guard vampires spine and split its head in two, dropping it into a slump on the ground.

The first vampire in the room saw Mouse coming and with an unnatural speed and strength swung for the dog's head. Mouse twisted and ducked the claw like hand and sunk his teeth deep into the thing's bicep. Its swing carried Mouse to the side, across the vampires' body and Mouse used his considerable weight and a yank of his teeth, at the end of the swing, to pull the vampire off his feet and into the wall at the side of the hallway. Even as the Vampire was trying to push itself to its feet, Mouse had his jaws firmly locked on the back of his neck and began to shake the creature violently.

Kincaid fired in three round bursts as Vampires started to move into the hallway, taking down two in short order. Carlos was sending blobs of florescent green acid from the tip of his blasting rod onto the remaining casket, eating large holes in the wood and lighting it on fire, pouring a caustic smelling smoke into the air.

I sent another streak of force down into a vampire just rounding the corner, limping and his left arm nearly detached, smoking from holy water with tacks twisted in the skin of its face. The force bolt caught him dead center in the chest, lifting him off his feet and leaving a deep dent in his chest as he collided with the Vampire behind him, toppling them both to the ground.

Suddenly there was a burst of orange and yellow flame near the back wall. It coalesced into a large face about four feet across. The brightness of the flame and its roaring din caused the vampires to turn to take in this new threat.

"I am the Great and Powerful Wizard Winfrey! You will surrender or you will surely die!" The face roared as the flames burst up to the ceiling. The vampires in the back of the room moved forward to avoid the flames and others simply stood there staring at the huge burning face as if wondering how to attack it.

In the confusion and commotion Kincaid pulled more large mason jars from his back pack and threw them down the hallway smashing them about three to four feet from the end of the hall, covering the end of the hall and splattering the room with the dark oily substance. Mouse, having snapped the neck of the vampire he was attacking turned and leapt through over the oily mess and bounded down the hallway back towards our group. Meanwhile Carlos was lobbing jars into the room splattering coffins and most of the room with the smelly diesel fuel.

"Now!" Molly yelled as the face of flame disappeared, leaving the room and hallway in utter darkness.

We all back pedaled quickly down the hallway and just before we got to the end I yelled, "Feugio!" and a jet of white hot, yellow and orange flame about a foot in diameter shot down the hallway setting the fuel on fire. There was a loud "Woosh!" and a large fireball the expanded half way down the hallway towards us. We jumped the trip wire and the rush of hot air and smoke poured out of the hallway as we headed up the stairs, being careful not to set off our own traps.

We were almost to the loading dock as the first trap went off shaking the building violently. At first I wasn't sure if the hot air had melted the trip wire or if something actually stepped on it, but as we were half way through the parking lot the second trap went off, collapsing the roof of the building and sending a dust cloud mushrooming into the air. Fire and smoke began to lick the roof as we pulled away into city streets bathed in the late afternoon sun.

"Do you think we got 'em all?" Carlos asked once we were a few miles away.

"If we didn't get them all, I think we got enough to send a clear message." I said with a grin.

"If we were dealing with a young vampire I'd agree, but if Marva is really in town, then I'd have to say that this was too easy." Carlos replied seriously.

"Either way, I think we put a sufficient dent in their numbers to keep them from trying anything for now. We at least bought ourselves the time we need to finish this before they can regroup." I said.

Carlos just nodded in agreement as we drove through the increasing traffic of the rush hour traffic.

Molly, Lash and Kincaid were getting out of the truck in my driveway as I pulled the blue beetle up alongside and let the engine sputter to a wheezy stop. With the look I got from Kincaid I was just happy it hadn't backfired.

Mouse, Carlos and I followed them into the house. Lash and Kincaid were laughing while Molly's cheeks were burning tomato red.

"The Great and Powerful Wizard Winfrey, I kid you not!" Kincaid said laughing. "Then a bunch of them just stood there staring at it. It was all I could do to not burst out laughing on the spot. This is one for the books." He roared.

"Well I couldn't very well say 'The Great and Powerful Wizard Oprah!' now could I? Some of them are new enough to have watched day time TV in the last decade. It was the first name that popped into my head." She said somewhat defensively.

I'm not sure if it was the look on my apprentice's face or the image of the huge flaming face bursting into existence dumbfounding the vampires, but I couldn't help but chuckle.

Molly gave me an exasperated look and dropped her head as she turned and headed into the living room.

"Okay boys and girls, we survived round one. You have about ten minutes to reload, freshen up and grab the gear for the next round. We leave in fifteen minutes." I said grabbing a coke out of the ice box.

I made a quick call to Pizza 'spress and gave them instructions to leave a stack of pizzas in my back yard and then headed to the back yard to get an update from my informant.


	15. Plan B

"V for Vengeance"

A/N: I'm not going to apologize for not getting this finished sooner (again) as I've been busy. I would however like to thank my readers and those who have reviewed my writing and sent me messages. I can't tell you how much your feedback means!

Also a Huge special thanks to Grimelark for his help with the story and beta reading!

Chapter 15

I was about to call Molly and Carlos from the lab and then head out the door when my phone rang.

"Dresden." I said by way of greeting to the receiver.

"Harry, were you down by the water front today?" Murphy asked in an accusatory tone.

"Define 'by the waterfront'." I said knowing she'd recognized my handiwork.

"Oh God Harry! That was you! I should have known!" she nearly yelled into the phone.

"Look it's a long story and I'm kinda busy right now, can we talk about this later?" I said reasonably.

"Kinda busy? Harry, what are you up to?" She asked sounding remarkably similar to Ricky Ricardo talking to Lucile Ball in an 'I Love Lucy' rerun, less the Cuban accent.

"No time to talk. I'll explain later. Okay then, be safe and I'll see you tomorrow, buh bye." I said hanging up the phone quickly.

"Who was that?" Kincaid asked a little more interested than he should have been.

"It was Murphy. She's not going on this little expedition and doesn't know we are, it needs to stay that way." I replied.

"She's a crack shot and knows how to kill these guys." Kincaid countered.

"She can hardly raise her arm from the last fight we were in. I'm not taking her into a firefight hurt." I said flatly.

"Whatever you say, you're the boss." He said nodding knowingly. I wasn't sure but I believe somewhere deep inside Kincaid was glad she wasn't coming either.

"We're ready!" Molly said cheerily as she and Carlos came up from the lab, closing the door behind them.

I grabbed an envelope from a cupboard and scrawled Pizza 'Spress across it and jammed a handful of bills into it and sealed it. On our way out I taped it to the wall of the building in the back yard where they were to leave the pizzas. With that, we were off.

We drove through the last of the rush hour traffic to the expensive side of town. We went from a upscale area of shops, art galleries and parks into a residential area. At first it looked like an older neighborhood that had gotten a face lift. The farther we drove the yards got bigger, the fences got taller and made of stone or metal and gates began appearing near the road, blocking what was sure to be long driveways. Eventually we found the address we were looking for in the well manicured neighborhood. We found a dark spot about a block away and parked.

We knew that they had cameras on the walls and guards and dogs inside the walls. Most importantly the old vampire's entourage and body guards were inside. The human guards were mostly outside and shouldn't be that hard to deal with. The dogs could also be dealt with. It was the vampires that worried me. They were fast, strong and knew the building better than we did, and that put us at a disadvantage.

Normally I'd rush the gates setting fire to or smashing anything in my way until I got to their leader and duke it out with him. It's not very subtle, but subtlety is overrated in my book. This time we weren't just out to take out the bad guy. He had two hostages, and I wasn't letting down Megan or her pompous Father. That changed things considerably, but with any luck I'd have a chance to take out as many of his henchmen as possible in the process.

Although effective, the hit and run tactics I'd used on the Black Court didn't set very well with me. I was itching for a good fight, but I also knew that this guy was old and powerful with a lot of friends. I had to remind myself that the hostages came first, but once they were safe, god help any of his goons who tried to get in my way.

"Does everyone know what they're doing, or should we go over it again?" I asked.

Everyone nodded and looked solemn. It was good they had their game faces on, that meant they understood what we were up against and a little fear is a good thing in a situation like this. It can keep you sharp and that can keep you alive.

We all synchronized our watches and double checked our packs and equipment before anyone spoke.

"Harry, I know what you said, but if things go wrong or you get into too much trouble, just give me a signal and I'll be there." Lash said, worry clouding her otherwise beautiful face.

"I will, but unless you get my signal you stay put. Well need the truck warmed up and ready when we come out." I said seriously.

"I know and I'll be there." She said stepping over to me and squeezing me harder than normal. Even with her cracked ribs, she was stronger than she looked.

"Kincaid, Molly you ready?" I asked.

"Ready." Kincaid said in a cool and detached voice. "Ready boss, just be careful." Molly said.

"You too grasshopper… If everyone just does their jobs, we'll all be out of here shortly." I said confidently. Carlos gave me a look that mirrored the worry on Lash and Molly's face. I just smiled at him, hoping that nobody noticed that I was as worried as they were.

"It's time." I said noticing the time on my old and battered wrist watch.

Molly and Kincaid stepped close to each other then vanished without a sound under one of Molly's masterful veils. At nearly the same time Carlos and I vanished under one of his veils, which were nearly as good as Molly's. I have to admit it the grasshopper has come a long way in her skills the last few years.

We moved up the street, staying on the far side of the street and in the shadows as much as possible. I know we were invisible, but better safe than sorry.

We waited under a large tree, which were all over the place in this neighborhood. We didn't have to wait too long as two long black limos pulled up to the gates and spoke to the little box in front of the gate.

"Let's move." I said as the gates slowly swung open.

As the limos pulled slowly into the driveway we jogged just behind the last one. The hope was that if any of the dogs picked up our scent, as long as we were invisible, the guards would write it off to the new cars pulling into their territory.

For good measure, just as the last limo was passing through the gates, Lash with Mouse on a leash came up to the gates. Mouse let out a deep growl and loud bark as he lunged, pulling the leash out of Lash's had and bolted into the yard chasing an imaginary squirrel.

Lash stood at the gate screaming for the dog, while the guards and guard dogs started chasing my wayward pooch. Mouse disappeared into the side yard quickly heading for the expansive back yard that this estate was sure to have, barking loudly as he went. Lash rushed into the gates chasing Mouse, tearfully saying her employers would kill her if anything happened to that dog. Reluctantly the guard at the gate hurried her after the dog hoping she could get it under control quickly, before his employer noticed the commotion.

Meanwhile we were nearing the front door. The limos slowed and eventually stopped. As we moved up to the trunk of the first car, staying on the far side away from the house, the front doors swung open. Two large men came out of the house; they were about the size of Hendricks, wearing dark suits with jaguar pelts as a sash over their shoulders, clasped with silver claws at the shoulder. One marched over to each of the limos and opened the back door.

A couple came out of the first car, the man dressed in a suit and a woman wearing what appeared to be a clingy evening dress. Both were unnaturally good looking and the woman's dress left little to the imagination. It was made of a sheer dark red material, probably silk and was cut mid thigh with a slit up the side that reached her hip and was cut low in the front. The dress moved and shifted as she walked making it hard to not get distracted. They looked in the direction of the commotion of the dogs barking and guards calling to Mouse then rolled their eyes and snorted haughtily.

Then four others came out of the second limo, which must have been the entourage for the first couple. The four were two men and two women; each dressed similar to their leaders, but somehow not quite as attractive. It must be a rank or age thing… Each group followed their escort towards the door and we were a few steps behind the last of the entourage.

We moved as quietly as possible but still kept up with the group. For Molly this wasn't much of a problem as she'd worked on a noise dampening component to her veil making her nearly silent when she was screaming under her veil, Carlos and I had no such luxury.

We followed them down a long wide hallway that could easily have held two semi trucks side by side. The floors were made of polished white marble with columns of teak or cherry wood, reaching up to the high ceilings which had large ornate chandeliers hanging at even intervals brightly lighting the place. We walked down a blood red carpet that ran down the center of the hallway and ended in two large reddish doors, similar to the columns. The doors appeared to have been hand carved with ornate scroll work and reliefs of battles and humans being devoured. "Now that's class." I thought to myself as I scowled at the doors, feeling a little sick to my stomach.

The group stopped briefly as the second escort made his way to the front of the group. Then one of them knocked once very loudly on the doors and then they both pushed open a door, stepping aside to let their guest pass as they bowed deeply.

So far so good, nobody seemed to notice the uninvited guests. However to my surprise, in the middle of the room sat a large hand carved gazebo, thick round columns supported a large domed roof with thick ornately carved beams coming together in the center to main part of the roof. Under the domed roof sat two large chairs made of ivory, some white wood and red velvet. Sitting next to the man in the big chair was Megan with her mother standing to her side and slightly behind her, both dressed in expensive evening gowns.

The plan was for Molly and Kincaid to head upstairs and get the girl and her mother while Carlos and I caused a scene down stairs to cover their escape. This threw a glitch in our plans. Suddenly Molly and Kincaid appeared next to us as Molly extended her veil to Carlos and I.

"What now boss?" Molly whispered.

"We go to plan B." I said confidently and quietly.

"What's plan B?" Kincaid asked.

"We wing it." I said as if it should have been obvious.

Kincaid grimaced, Carlos let out a low groan and Molly's eyebrows knitted slightly raised.

"Actually I have an idea." I said. "Molly you come with me, Carlos keep your veil up and you and Kincaid go to the corner to the right so we can find you, in a few minutes." I said optimistically.

"Where are you going?" Carlos asked in a whisper.

"I have to talk to someone. Just hang tight. We'll be there in a little bit." I told them sternly.

"What you're just going to ask to use the phone?" Kincaid asked as if talking to a child.

"No, the person I need to talk to should already be here. Just go stand over there till I come get you." I said exasperated. "Now move before they close the doors!"

The Red court entourage had already moved down the red carpet into the room and was almost to the large comfortable chairs that had been set out for them in front of the gazebo. Carlos and Kincaid moved quickly and disappeared as Molly and I moved past the guards, who were just starting to close the mammoth sized doors, and then headed for the other back corner of the room.

We got to the corner with no trouble. Once there we stopped and Molly looked at me expectantly.

"Grasshopper, did you bring rope?"

"Sure I did, why?" Molly asked a little confused.

"Do you still remember the rope trick that Lash taught you?" I asked.

"You mean controlling the rope to coil or bind things? Yeah, I practice that one to work on my control as an exercise before working on my illusions." She said nodding, the wheels grinding in her head.

"Good now I need you to keep the veil up and close your eyes and plug your ears." I said.

"Do you want me to rub my tummy, pat my head and say Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers to?" she asked as her eyebrows rose.

"Maybe later, now just close your eyes and plug your ears. Keep concentrating on the veil." I said sternly and quietly.

"Fine..." She said with a grimace as she lifted her hands holding her wands to the sides of her head, scrunching her eyes closed tighter than was required as she plugged her ears.

The guards had stepped out of the room as the heavy doors closed.

I put a little power into my words and spoke quietly but with intention, "Toot-Toot!".

The words had just left my mouth when his nimbus appeared less than a foot in front of my face. A lesser man would have flinched at the sudden appearance so close to his face. I simply stood straighter, to better my posture, quickly...

"Harry, they moved the girl." He said quietly pointing to the gazebo.

"I noticed that Toot, thanks for the heads up." I said quietly and grumpily.

"Well he didn't move them until you had left your apartment…" He began.

"It doesn't matter now. We're here and so is she and I have an idea." I said reasonably.

We talked over the plan quickly and then Toot disappeared again. I poked Molly gently in the stomach and couldn't help but notice the lean and toned muscle, she'd been working out and it looked good on her. She opened one eye, then the other and moved her hands away from fro her head.

"Can I open my eyes now?" She asked staring at me.

"Yeah, sure, let's go get Carlos and Kincaid." I whispered, grabbing her arm and gently pulling her towards our two comrades in the far corner.

"What was that all about?" Carlos whispered when we appeared next to him, Molly's veil covering his as we entered it.

"Long story, here's what we're going to do…" I laid out the plan for them and since nobody had a better idea, we went with what we had.

The two groups had just finished exchanging pleasantries and an offer and acceptance of hospitality during their meeting and were just seating themselves when the large double doors at either end of the room flew open with a loud Bang. Through the doors came a swarm of hundreds of tiny colored lights that descended on the guest party and began to dart and weave around them, pulling at their cloths and hair while making an angry buzzing sound like a swarm of oversized wasps.

"What is the meaning of this?" The leader of the visiting vampires demanded as he bolted out of his chair. "What kind of trick are you trying to pull?" He shouted.

The host was dumbfounded and outraged watching these tiny lights streak around his guests, disheveling and tearing at their hair and clothes as they went. This certainly wasn't on the agenda.

"Guards, protect our guests!" he demanded as he jumped to his feet and the shocked guards standing around the gazebo leapt into action. They rushed past their leader towards the area the visitors were sitting in, drawing short nasty looking daggers from somewhere. The guards were women dressed in short simple black sleeveless dresses, with dark skin and hair, their eyes were now mostly all black as they descended into the guest area.

I'm not sure if the visiting entourage didn't hear him or didn't care, seeing five nimble and armed vampires rushing them, but two of the men rushed the nearest guards with incredible speed, taking them by surprise. Their hands extended as their claws ripped through their flesh mask and brought the sharp tips of their fingers to bear on the abdomens of the women rushing to their aid. The first guard simply gasped. Her black eyes were unnaturally wide as the other vampire's claw ripped through her and emerged from her back, clutching her severed spine in its grasp.

The other tried to dodge and spin the oncoming attack and ended up with deep cuts from her ribs, down her stomach and across her thigh. The force of the attack sent her off balance to the side of the group before she stopped and turned to face her attacker. She was bleeding a lot and looked a little wobbly in the knees, but her eyes showed the animal instinct in her, wounded and angry, she stood crouched ready to pounce.

The guards from the doors stood at the doorway, large guns drawn watching the scene in front of them, not sure what to do.

The rest of the guards from the gazebo simply stopped, crouching defensively as their flesh masks began to rip and tear away, unsure what to attack. The women from the entourage had stepped forward to impose themselves between the oncoming vampires and their bosses, while the tiny orbs continued to streak around them, pinching and tugging at them as they zipped by.

"This is not my doing. Stop!" shouted the host. The words had just left his lips as a loud Pop, erupted from near the doors and a bullet ripped through the shoulder of the female leader of the guests. The bulled blew dark blood in a spray over her female guards as the bullet lodged in the leg of the host's throne only inches away from where Megan sat.

Megan moved quickly around the chair grabbing her mother and hiding behind the chairs for cover.

"Stop shooting, everyone, just stop!" he screamed outraged.

The two guards looked at their guns and then each other confused as their leader moved down towards his guests.

"Everyone, stop, I don't know what this is but I assure you I had nothing to do with it." He yelled over the buzzing as he motioned for his guards to hold their places.

"This was YOUR doing!" shouted the leader of the guests, pulling his wife close. As he thrust his finger accusingly at the host, the roof of the gazebo burst into flames thanks to some creative magic. The host and his guest were both equally shocked as they looked at each other in confusion. Both vampires were on the verge of giving into their rage.

Carlos and I were backing up when he bumped a table against the wall next to the doorway, sending a particularly expensive and ancient vase smashing to the ground.

"Hey!" said one of the guards intelligently as he raised his foot and kicked the ornamental table into Carlos's side, sending him sprawling to the floor behind me and leaving me outside the veil.

They all turned and looked at me for a second, more confusion registered on their faces.

"You!" Howled the host as his eyes widened and jaws opened large enough to hold a cantaloupe.

"This isn't the Hilton! I should be going now… Guys, get out of here!" I said loudly and the swarm of fairies streaked up to the ceiling and disappeared.

"STOP HIM!" shouted the host.

"Yeah, get him!" I said pointing to the leader of the guests. The guards showed a moment of confusion, exchanging glances, then anger flushed their cheeks as they began to close on where I stood. Can't blame a guy for trying…

So there I stood, two huge maybe half humans closing on me while the two remaining guards from the gazebo closed on me. The guards from the far doors moved up towards their leader, drawing their weapons. All eyes were on me and they weren't happy eyes either. I'd guess that of everyone I could see, I was the only one that wanted me to live more than a few seconds.

I started backpedaling as they started to get closer.

"Hey what about hospitality?" I said nervously.

"You weren't invited." The host said coldly.

"The door was open so I just came in." I said defensively, "Legally that could be considered an invitation."

"Not by our laws. You are an intruder and an assassin." He hissed as he began to move towards me.

"I will take your head to the Red King as a token of my admiration." He hissed as the skin fell away from his face and hands. This wasn't part of my plan but hey, sometimes you have to roll with the punches.

I drew my blasting rod and shook out my shield bracelet and stopped, pulling my duster around me and standing to my full height. I gave the host a vicious smile as I pumped magic and intention into my blasting rod, causing the runes along its shaft to glow gold and orange.

"Is this really what you want to do there sparky?" I asked raising my blasting rod, then pointing it at his guests.

"You wouldn't." He said as he stopped in his tracks. Hospitality is an interesting thing, it's an old world tradition that I won't fully go into, but one of the responsibilities of the guest is to behave themselves and the host is required to see to their safety and other needs as long as they are his guest. By hurting his guests, I would diminish his reputation as he would fail to meet his obligation as a host. The older groups in the magical community and vampire courts in particular take that sort of thing very seriously.

"Sure I would, I'm the monster you tell your young ones about, remember." I snarled as I raised my blasting rod and released a small ball of flame, and then dropped my arm to target his guests again.

The ball of compressed, superheated fire streaked orange and gold into the ceiling and burst into a mushroom of flame lighting the ceiling on fire and melting the chain holding one of the chandeliers. The expensive lighting fixture dropped to the floor smashing to pieces just to the left of his guests sending shards of crystal like shrapnel in every direction. Magic fire is different than normal fire, it burns a lot hotter for one and it will burn just about anything it touches and it's kind of pretty…

"I know why you're here Dresden." He spoke my name like it was a dirty word.

As I watched him and his guests, the roof of the gazebo was fully engulfed in flames, pouring smoke into the cavernous room. With the ceiling on fire as well smoke was beginning to fill the room and pour out the tops of the open doors. From behind the thrones I could hear Megan and her mother sobbing, both terrified as embers started to fall from the ceiling. I saw a brief, diffused shimmer of green light from the gazebo as the guests and their entourage began to move to the far side of me, spreading out as if to circle me. This wasn't good, think fast Harry.

"You think you can come to my town and just take anyone you please? You bit a senator's daughter and stole his wife. Didn't you think that would bring any unwanted attention?" I Snarled. "I have a reputation to uphold too you know. I can't let this happen!"

"You've lost Wizard. You can't win now. You're out numbered and out classed." The host growled as he inched closer.

"Maybe so, but I can keep you from getting what you want!" I fumed as I turned my wrist and sent another blast of fire into the ceiling.

This time I dropped the huge chandelier over the flaming gazebo. The light fixture had to weigh at least four hundred pounds and was the centerpiece of the room. The roof of the gazebo, made of heavy, thick carved wood had to weigh another three hundred pounds easily. One hit the other and both smashed with enough force to shatter tiles exposing cracked concrete underneath surrounding it and crushing the burning chairs underneath. I could hear Megan's brief dying scream as her mother was thrown across the floor having been struck by debris. Mrs. Forthright lay in a heap, crumpled on the ground unconscious as her daughter's body burned in the magical fire.

"You fool! Do you know what you've done?" The leader of the guests shrieked.

"Now, you will die!" The host screamed as he streaked toward me in a blur of claws and fangs.

I raised my shield and braced for impact only an instant before he slammed into my shield, sliding me a few feet back across the tiles. The guests were now clear of the chairs and were moving to my side in an attempt to flank me and slip behind as I was pretty much occupied by their host.

The eight vampires started to move, the two bosses and two entourage, to my left and two bodyguards and two guests to my right. The two doormen were the next closest to me, after their boss who was throwing a tantrum on my shield and screaming some really nasty things at me. The injured vampire had crumpled to the ground and lay there glassy eyed as too much blood leaked from her wounds.

Things were just about to get really ugly when something about twice the size of a dinner plate simply appeared and slid across the room stopping just behind the four guards to my right and just before it exploded, Carlos and Kincaid appeared as Carlos raised a shield.

Although it was a good twenty feet away and I had my shield up at full force I still felt the blast as bits of metal and phosphorous filled the area. The vampire attacking me was pressed flat against my shield. The four vampires that were closest to the blast were torn to small, greasy, flaming pieces, while the others simply sustained a good bit of damage.

The two leaders and the remainder of their entourage howled in pain and surprise as they turned to face their two new assailants. Meanwhile the two closest doormen, although injured, still managed to open fire on me, sending bullets and bright blue flashes of energy flying off my shield.

Kincaid held an assault rifle in each hand and didn't waste any time opening fire on the two door men who were attacking me, while Carlos sent a ball of fire at the injured female leader that lifted her off her feet and threw her back, catching her bloodstained clothing and ripped, oily flesh on fire.

She howled and writhed on the ground, while her husband flew at Carlos.

Kincaid's guns sounded like chainsaws as they tore through the chest and abdomens of the two doormen attacking me, dropping them to their knees.

Carlos leveled his blasting rod; it shone with an orange red sheen as another bolt of compressed fire and rage erupted from its tip. The blast caught the leader of the guests in the belly, lifting him off the ground and ripping a hole through his abdomen. His spine was visible where his black flabby flesh showed under what remained of his really expensive suit, which like his innards and skin was burning with orange and blue flames. He struggled on the ground, clawing at the tiles trying to continue his assault as black acrid smoke poured from his body.

The two remaining entourage guards, seeing their leaders dead and dying, having lost their prey, made the sensible choice and ran for it. They streaked towards the far set of doors, streaking past the two guards who had been stationed at the doors and disappeared into the smoke filled hallway on the other side.

Sparky on the other hand, didn't notice that his friends had left the building and was wearing my shield down pretty quickly.

I leveled my blasting rod at his chest and pumped my rage, fear and lots of magic into the rod until it glowed white from handle to tip, adding a nice bit of soulfire to give it that silvery sheen. Then I loosed the power in one concise blast, sending a force bolt through my shield and into the chest of my attacker. Normally, I'd expect a blast like that to rip a troll in half. Sparky just slid on the polished tiles a good six feet before coming to a stop with a new dent in his chest. Bloody ribs showed through his torn shirt and black, shiny flesh. It wasn't as spectacular as I had hoped for but he was hurt. That meant I could kill him and he knew it too.

He wrapped his arm around his chest protectively, and then screamed in pain and rage, his eyes glazed with insane rage, he was baring his teeth at me, as he stretched out his good arm and slashed at the fabric of reality, tearing a gaping, ragged hole into the nevernever.

"This can't be good." Carlos complained as Kincaid dropped the last of the door guards and flipped the three clips duct taped together, putting a fresh one in the gun and releasing the bolt.

"Yeah, I hate it when they do that." Kincaid chimed in with a clinical detachment.

Sparky tried to run for the back door as the ghouls protecting this place from the nevernever side began to pour into the room. I left the new arrivals to my competent assistants as I gave chase.

"Throwing a party and nobody invited me?" a raspy vaguely female voice said.

As we neared the back of the room we could see Marva and two of her stronger henchmen entering the room. It was an eerie sight to see them emerge from the smoke, dressed in tattered burial clothes, their eyes glowed in the dark smoke of the room. Marva's head was mostly skull by now with patches of stringy, dirty hair hanging around her shoulders in places. Her friends looked newer, if I had to guess I'd say twenty to maybe fifty years dead. They still had dried patches of skin hanging from their faces, what was left of their lips didn't hide their large sharp fangs.

"You!" Sparky screamed as we both skidded to a stop, the rage in his voice changed to fear. This guy really didn't like using proper names.

"Yes, you thought you had outwitted me, you both did, didn't you?" she rasped looking first at sparky then at me. "Really Harry, did you have to burn my new recruits so brazenly?"

"It seemed like the thing to do at the time." I said honestly.

"I'm sure, and you Antonio, did you think deceiving me and stealing the girl before I had a chance to get her would stop me?" She hissed. Between the two of us I'd have to say she was angrier with Sparky, I mean 'Antonio' than she was with me.

"Where is the girl!" she demanded in her angry gravel mixer voice. The force she exuded with that statement rocked us both back onto our heels, well that and her breath.

"She's in the Gazebo." I said pointing to the bonfire in the middle of the room.

"So I am to assume the rescue is not going as planned Wizard?" She hissed at me, her angry red glowing eyes narrowing dangerously. Okay now she was mad at me too. My day just wasn't getting any better.

"Not really." I said honestly, as gunfire and magic flew across the other end of the room, not coming close to stopping the flow of new arrivals from the Nevernever.

"We had to go to Plan B and it kinda went sideways from there." I explained. If the glowing orbs she called eyes could roll, I think they would have.

"Well then, since there's nothing here for me, I'll leave you two to kill each other." She growled disgusted with us both.

"Dresden, one last thing."

"Uh, yeah?" I said intelligently.

"If you kill Antonio, I may forget about your indiscretions from earlier. I expect bad behavior from a young Wizard, but a senior Red Court member simply can't be allowed to exhibit such poor judgment and expect to live." She hissed as she and her two companions drifted backwards, disappearing into the smoky hallway, the two huge doors slamming shut behind them. I felt a surge of magical energy as they slammed and could only conclude they were sealed.

"I always hated that creature." Antonio spat as he spun to face me.

I have to hand it to him, he was fast. His arm was a blur of motion as he spun, his razor sharp claws swung through thin air where he had expected my chest to be. Instead of ripping open my chest he was caught under the chin with a ball of fire mixed with a fair amount of soulfire as I crouched on the floor.

That spell could have burned through a train engine and still demolished a few cars after it. Instead my spell simply took him off his feet and exploded his head as the intense heat and energy slipped into his greasy, flabby, wet brain. He may be able to resist magic, but nobody can resist the laws of physics.

Bone and burning gore filled the air as his headless, burning body flew back into the doors, leaving a dark greasy stain that quickly caught fire as his body slid to the floor and was consumed in a cocoon of orange and blue flame. Okay so it was a sucker punch, the point is he was dead and I was not. Chalk one up for the good guys.

"If you're done chatting, we could use some help over here!" Carlos yelled as he tried to keep his shield in place as an ever increasing number of ghouls attacked him and Kincaid.

"Do I have to do everything myself?" I yelled as I circled the burning remains of the gazebo.

The ghouls were nearly encircling the two as they blasted and shot at them, dropping them one by one as the emerged from the rift three by three.

"Why ghouls? It's always ghouls! Why can't they have trolls or maybe gruff for a change? I think this guy was in a rut if you ask me." I yelled as I quickly moved to join my friends.

"Well, if something works, you stick with it I guess." Carlos replied as he wiped his forehead. I could tell he was getting tired and for a Wizard in the middle of a fight, that's not a good thing.

"I'll get their attention. You drink your energy drink." I told him. He and Molly, among other things had brewed some energy potions, think of it as bottled power. It wouldn't last long and he'd crash hard later, but it should give him enough to get him through the fight.

"Yeah, good plan." He yelled as he sent a ball of acid thru one and a half ghouls that were pressing against his shield. They howled and one dropped to the ground as the other went into a frenzy, swiping at the shield and other ghouls that were too close.

I tried to close the rift, but as the ghouls kept pouring through it, they kept pushing it open. So it was time to roll up my sleeves and help clean up this mess.

I grabbed an aluminum container from inside my duster that had a piece of tape, labeled with a black marker that read, "Explosive". I rolled it across the floor towards the rift and when it got to be about three feet away I raised my shield and I loosed the energy in my blasting rod. I hit the container with a narrow beam of fire. The container exploded with enough force to throw four ghouls into the air and pushed those who were just emerging from the rift back inside, toppling those that were planning on following them. Unfortunately it also gave a healthy shove to those that were headed for Carlos, smashing them into those in front of them. Ghouls were pressed flat against his shield and others dropping from the air around him, with varying degrees of damage. If they hadn't been big, strong monsters with long pointy claws bent on devouring us dead or alive, it would have been hilarious.

Before they had a chance to react I pulled the rift closed with considerable effort. Then I turned my attention to those that were closest to me. Which, oddly enough were quite a few as once they notice me, about half of them rushed at me with amazing speed for something so awkward looking.

As I pushed will into my shield bracelet I was struck by what felt like a Buick and was thrown to the side and sent sliding across the polished tile floor to the red carpet in front of the gazebo. Did I mention they were fast and strong?

I finished raising my shield as I pulled myself off the floor, my ribs protested very loudly as did my hip and shoulder on my left side. The duster had saved me from being shredded by the claws, but not from the force of the blow or impact with the ground, which I assumed by the pain involved, did a fair bit of damage.

It was getting hard to see as the smoke from the many fires filled the room. I saw the shapes of the first few ghouls and then they were on me, battering at my shield with their huge, powerful claws. I poured my strength, fear and pain into my rod and sent a stream of fire at the group of ghouls in front of me. I managed to slice an arm off one and cut another in half, while taking a big chunk out of the one next to him and as two fell they were replaced by three who had found me in the smoke as those in my way howled and screamed.

I was starting to get a headache as I cut through the sea of fangs and claws and my shield bracelet, although new and improved, was starting to get warm. This wasn't a good sign.

"Harry!" Carlos yelled.

"I closed the rift, we just have to deal with those in the room and we're out of here." I yelled back.

"Better make it fast. I'm not sure how long the ceiling is going to stay up." Kincaid yelled back sounding a little annoyed. The room was getting really hot as the flames from the ceiling and now walls and the burning gazebo and carpets filled the room with hot air and billowing smoke.

As his voice echoed in the room the back doors blew inward sending them sliding across the room and into the walls, literally into the walls. As smoke and flames poured out of the room, sucked through the new opening I could see Lash and Murphy entering the room, looking like something out of a western.

Murphy in her jeans, boots and flak jacket and Lash in her black leather, they strode into the room like they owned the place and they looked good. In the movies it would have been all in slow motion as they took long strides, glancing at one another knowingly, flipping their hair over their shoulders as they raised their weapons, ready for business with smiles on their ruby red, glossy lips.

Instead, they simply opened fire. Lash sent a blast of cold air through the room, clearing away most of the low hanging smoke and catching the attention of any ghouls that weren't otherwise occupied. Murphy brought a small black boxy looking gun with a really long clip up to her hip and opened fire.

Those ghouls who weren't in arms reach of Carlos or I turned and rushed the two women, which meant about a third of them. Bolts of ice and flame flew from Lash's blasting rod, tearing holes in some and turning others into walking torches, while Murphy simply fired short bursts in a controlled arc in front of them, tearing up anything that got in their way.

The first ghoul to reach them was at a dead run. Lash braced for impact while Murphy dropped to one knee and concentrated fire on him as he quickly approached. The ghoul hit Lash's shield as if it were an invisible brick wall, which briefly flashed showing a silvery dome over the two. Murphy followed its body, raising the barrel of the gun in an arc as it slid over the dome and crumpled into a dead mass of torn flesh and ooze on the other side.

Lash and Murphy started moving in a slow circle and waved for me to move toward Carlos as they did. I sent flame and force into the group that was on me as my shield threatened to buckle. Carlos and Kincaid were almost through their group as they started to move towards the door.

Soon we had the group contained and started to move in on them as Murphy and Kincaid sent lead and death into the group, Lash, Carlos and I burned through the rest, leaving their smoking lifeless bodies in a heap. The ones at the bottom were already dissolving into ectoplasm as the last one fell.

Carlos looked exhausted and I wasn't much better as I was getting to the last of my reserves, between the shield and spells I'd been tossing around today.

I felt a rush of relief that was quickly replaced by fear and dread as with a loud roar part of the ceiling behind me collapsed and the rest of the ceiling was about to do the same by the looks of it.

"Everybody get out!" I yelled.

I didn't have to tell anyone twice as we sprinted to the doors. Lash and Murphy were just behind Carlos and Kincaid as they exited the room. I was close on their heels as the ceiling completely gave way. The burning debris and support beams crashed down onto my shield which was a full dome over me at the time. The force of the blow against the curve of my shield, threw me out of the room as my shield buckled completely.

The good news was I was thrown clear. So there I was, flying through the air, minding my own business, when I slammed into Lash's shield and abruptly stopped in mid air, then sat down hard on the tile floor. Some people are so inconsiderate. Pain erupted from my hip, ribs, face and shoulder as I sat there with an indignant look on my face.

Having heard the crash and felt the impact Lash looked relived that it was my whole, mostly unbroken body that hit her shield and not just bits and pieces. Seeing the look on my face, nobody bothered to comment on what happened.

"Harry, are you alright?" Lash and Murphy said at once.

"I'm fine…" I said as blood began to trickle from my nose.

"We have no time for this people, bad guy's guards, burning house… We have an escape to make." Kincaid said as if talking to amateurs.

"Get moving people." I said in my grumpy wizard voice as lifted my bruised ego off the ground.

Lash dropped her shield and grabbed my arm pulling me forward before raising it again over Murphy and us. We ran to the front doors, where to my surprise two door guards lay arms and legs tied together and neatly wrapped in rope that was tied with a very nice knot.

"Molly did that." Lash said with an approving grin, and then she and Carlos dropped their shields and raised veils as we left the house.

Smoke was pouring from every door and window as well as the roof. The gates were open as house staff and guards moved away from the house and the sound of fire trucks and sirens could be heard in the distance.

It wasn't easy to navigate through the chaos without dropping the veil or having someone walk into one of them, but we managed somehow. A few minutes later, we were back in the shadows at our vehicles and everyone dropped the veils and an anxious Molly rushed around the truck to greet us.

"Harry, what happened to your nose?" She asked.

"War wound, no big deal." I said brazenly getting a smirk from Lash and Murphy.

"How about you grasshopper, how did it go?" I asked hopefully.

"Everything went off without a hitch. I even managed to take care of two guards on my way out." She beamed.

"Yeah, I saw that, good job. We should spar sometime." Carlos piped up giving her one of his dazzling smiles, to which Molly rolled her eyes and smirked.

"We can pat each other on the backs later. Cops and big red trucks are on the way, we should be gone when they get here." I said.

"I'll drive the truck." Molly said already moving around the front of the truck.

"Watch the packages under the tarp, their fragile." Lash said as Carlos was about to drop his pack into the bed of the truck.

Lash and I crawled into the blue beetle. Mouse was lazing comfortably in the back seat looking proud of himself. Carlos slid into the truck, a little too close to Molly as Kincaid followed Murphy to her car. A few seconds late we were driving down the dark tree lined streets and headed into the city.


	16. Mayhem and Miracles

"V for Vengeance"

Chapter 16

When we pulled into my parking lot the truck was already there and empty. I don't know how Molly could drive as fast as she must have to beat us by such a large margin and not get a ticket, but I'm sure magic was involved. I'd need to have a word with her later about that.

Lash waited for me to open her door for her. I must say that her enchanted leather outfit looked a lot nicer on her than my duster did on me. I smiled to myself as I closed the door and walked her to my stairwell.

"Harry, I know you didn't want Murphy or I involved in the fighting. Murphy arrived after you went in. When we heard the shooting and explosions continue and you didn't come out… We couldn't sit idly by and do nothing." She said firmly.

"Then Murphy decided to go in and I couldn't let her go alone so I veiled her and we went in. I know you are probably not happy about it, but we both care about you, Molly and the others. You would have done the same!" Lash finished looking me directly in the face, her shoulders were back and her chin was lifted and set. The light from the street lamps outlined her and glistened highlighting her curves as her long blond hair spilled around the black leather.

I was tired and honestly I wasn't mad. Seeing here there so determined and committed only reinforced in my mind why I was with her. I gave her a hard look for a second, then shook my head laughing as I slipped my arm around her waist and pulled her into me, hugging her as tight as my ribs and shoulder would let me. At first she seemed startled, and then as I held her close I felt her body relax into mine as she returned the embrace.

"Thank you." I whispered into her ear as I held her in the darkness, feeling her warm and soft skin against my cheek. We stood there holding each other for a long moment.

"So you aren't mad?" She asked as we pulled away.

"How can I be mad at you when you look so good?" I asked impishly, causing her cheeks to turn a bright red as I pulled back to kiss her.

"Well played!" said a voice from the bottom of the stairs. Carlos stood in the doorway, grinning from ear to ear. "So are you two going to come inside, or should I give you a moment?" He asked snickering.

"You go inside. I have something I have to check on." I said quietly to Lash as I turned for the back yard. Lash gave me a knowing grin and went inside closing the door behind her.

I turned the corner and stepped into the back yard. The pizza boxes were nearly shredded and there were plump little balls of light littering the back yard. Some of the fairies were tiny; others were easily discernable in the darkness. Almost all of them had extended stomachs. There zipping around in the yard was the largest fairy in the group, the red from the pizza sauce looked like blood dripping from his mouth and covering his breastplate. If I hadn't known what it was the scene would have been grisly.

He nearly dropped the armful of paper when he saw me, then he zipped over to me quickly hovering in front of me.

"Harry! I'm so glad to see you." Toot said with his eyes wide and a large grin on his face.

"I'll take that." I said, letting him drop the wet cardboard into my hand. "You guys did really good back there tonight." I said remembering the chaos and tiny orbs accosting the vampire visitors.

"I made sure everyone made it back here safely then the pizza man came!" Toot said obviously pleased.

"I'm glad you enjoyed the Pizza! What you did back there took some real courage and you nearly turned the two groups against each other. It worked better than I had hoped." I said smiling remembering the confused vampires.

"I'm glad it worked, but the courage, I'm not too sure about. You know we can't die here. The little ones would have had a hard time of it if they had their bodies destroyed here but any of us would have just been sent back to the nevernever, until we regained our strength." He said.

"That may be true, but still you faced those monsters and succeeded." I said honestly.

"We did!"Toot said with a wide smile. Then his eyes got wide with surprise and he put his fingers to his lips and let out a barely audible whistle as he and his companions simply vanished.

"Harry?"

"Back here." I said turning to face the parking area.

"There you are." Thomas said as he rounded the corner. "I heard on the radio earlier that there was some sort of gas explosion earlier in the gold coast area. Laura wanted me to check to see if you knew anything about it." He said with a hint of a smile on his face.

"No, can't say as I do." I said unconvincingly.

"Harry, this is obviously your handiwork. Just between you and me, how did it go?" He asked genuinely concerned.

"We were able to save the girl's mother, everyone else died in the blaze. Some of the guards and house staff made it out, but the two Red Court groups died, as did their hostage." I said dropping my head. "Even I can't save the girl every time."

"I'm sure it's for the best." Thomas said, putting his hand on my shoulder. "I know you wanted to do something to help her but sometimes people just can't be helped. If you had saved her she and her mother would be hunted. I know it's a small consolation but you gave her and her family peace, don't discount that Harry."

"Thanks Thomas, I appreciate the sentiment." I said quietly.

"I know you're going to sulk for a few days, but when you feel better you and Lash should come by the club. My treat." He said gently patting my shoulder.

"Maybe I'll take you up on that." I said half heartedly.

"You should. I know you have company inside. I saw Molly and Carlos earlier so I won't keep you. Just think about what I said. You did the best thing you could for all concerned. Take heart in that." He said, and then he turned and disappeared around the corner.

I stood in the dark cold air thinking about what he had said as I finished cleaning up the last of the pizza boxes. "You gave her and her family peace" he had said. I couldn't help but wonder if I had. Only time would tell if I had done the right thing, but he was right in that I did the best I could for Megan and her family.

As I came into the house I was greeted by Mister hitting me in the shins and Megan nearly pushing me into the door as she squeezed me tightly.

"Harry! I can't believe you did it. You came back for me!" She sobbed into my ear.

"Go easy on the merchandise." I said as I pulled back, my ribs protesting from the tight hug. I raised my wards and locked the door before turning and following her into my living room.

Megan's mother sat in an old overstuffed armchair sipping her cup of coffee looking completely shell shocked. Lash and Molly were sitting on the couch next to her talking quietly.

"So tell me again how they didn't see us walk out of that big room." Megan's mother asked.

"It's called a veil, just think of it as an invisibility spell." Molly said beaming at the older woman.

"Then when the gazebo collapsed they saw an illusion of you fly across the room. With the ceiling collapsing in there it'll be days before they can sift through the rubble and honestly, in a fire that intense, they wouldn't expect to find much."

"So you're all wizards?" She asked looking at each of us like she was wondering if she was in a dream.

"Mrs. Forthright, the details don't matter. You're husband sent us to get you away from those people and we did. The only caveat is that they must believe your daughter is dead." I said firmly. "If they find out that she's alive, this all starts over again."

"So what she has to live in the attic for the rest of her life? How is that going to work?" Her mother said not sounding like she was a big fan of the plan.

"It's complicated, but I know some people who can help her to disappear. Think of them as you would the witness protection program. She'll simply disappear. The important thing is you have to go on as if she had passed away. You'll need to have a funeral and really make it believable." I told her.

"So I won't get to see her again?" She asked, tears glistening in her eyes.

"I can't say for sure, but I would guess not. It's as much for your safety as it is hers." I said calmly.

"Then no, I forbid it. Nobody is going to take my daughter away from me again." She said sobbing.

"Mother, what he hasn't told you is that I was bitten, infected by those people. You saw what they turned into. If I don't get help, I'll be just like them. There is no cure for my condition, but with his friends help, I can lead a mostly normal life and keep this in check so I don't become a monster." Megan said, kneeling beside her mother's chair, holding her hands.

"My baby…"Her mother sobbed as she simply held Megan close and they both cried.

"You both look exhausted. Mrs. Forthright you should go lay down for a while. We'll call you when it's time to go." I told her gently.

"You're right." She said as she stood up on wobbly legs. Molly helped her into my room and got her settled in.

"What's this I hear about fairies?" Lash asked as she moved to the couch with a slight grin.

"When we saw that Megan and her mother were downstairs, we needed a distraction so that Molly could get around behind the Gazebo and grab them. Toot and his friends swarmed the visiting Red Court and drew everyone's attention. Kincaid fired at the chair that the guy who was holding them was sitting in, hoping they'd take cover and give Molly a chance to grab them." I told her, dumping the sliced onions into the frying pan.

"It worked pretty well until Carlos and I got separated. I thought the two vampire groups were going to kill each other, actually a few of the underlings started going at each other. Then I appeared and they all came after me. When Molly gave me the all clear, I dropped a chandelier on the burning gazebo and Molly supplied the screams, then they cleared out." I explained sitting next to her.

"So now that the Red Court believes she's dead, do you think she'll have a chance at a normal life?" Molly asked, concern clouding her face as she glanced at the woman only a few years younger than her, sitting lost in thought poking at the fire with an iron rod.

"As normal a life as we have any way." I said giving Molly a wink.

"She'll be fine Molly. She has a strong spirit and a stubborn streak like Murphy's." Lash said with a smile. "She won't give up so easily."

"Speaking of Megan and her mother, someone should call the Senator." I said.

"Mrs. Forthright already called him. We told him she'd be home tomorrow. To be sure that nobody is following her she wanted to stay here with her daughter tonight." Lash said glancing at the two. "Is that okay with you?" Lash asked looking up at me.

"If they don't mind, its fine by me, but it'll be crowded." I said with a smirk.

"I think you're right." Lash said.

"I should make a few phone calls." I said.

"I think Mouse could use a walk." Lash said grabbing his leash and heading for the door. Mouse joined her without being called, what can I say, he's a smart dog.

With that I headed down into my lab, pulling the door closed behind me and lifted the receiver and then started dialing. I spoke to a coordinator at Edinburgh who agreed to set up another meeting with representatives from the Fellowship of St. Giles. After a few phone calls we had arranged for them to come to my house.

As I was pushing the rugs back into place I heard Megan talking to Molly.

"Look I just need to clear my head. I can't stand being cooped up like this, now get out of my way!" Megan said in a cool low voice.

"The world thinks you're dead. If anyone saw you then it would ruin everything we've worked for and remember you came to me." I said calmly as I turned the corner into the kitchen.

I could feel the tension hit me like a slap in the face as I came around the corner. Megan was trembling and Molly stood between her and the door. Molly's face was determined and set but her posture gave away the fear she was feeling.

"You freed me and saved my mother, you're job is done. Now get out of my way before I move you myself." Megan growled.

"You're not going out." Molly said firmly.

"Do you really think you could stop me?" Megan asked, her fingers curling claw like at her side. Her skin turning flushed I could.

"Megan! Come here this instant!" Her mother said from the door to my room.

"This man has saved our lives tonight, he and his friends are a little weird but their right, you need to come in and sit down." Mrs. Forthright said in a very good impersonation of Charity Carpenter. I guess all mothers learn that tone at some point in child rearing, the one of absolute authority and supreme dominance.

"You dare tell me what to do?" Megan hissed as she turned. Her face was beet red and her eyes had no color as the pupils had swollen to cover most all of her eyes. Megan was losing it. It wasn't the sweet child that Mrs. Forthright had raised that faced her now, it was the hunger and it was taking control.

"Megan, you need to relax and calm down." I said shaking out my shield bracelet.

"I will calm myself, after I've eaten." She said as she swung her arm at my chest in a blur my shield forming as I tumbled over the back of the couch from the force of the crushing impact.

As I lay with my knees over the back of the couch and my shoulders on the coffee table I saw Megan moving over towards her mother.

"Yes mother, I'm coming, just as you asked." She said in a gravelly voice as she stared at her mother the way a wolf looks at a doe. "So hungry."

My blasting rod was in my duster which was draped over the overstuffed arm chair to my right and just out of reach. Although it was my favorite focus and tool to use in a fight it wasn't my only one.

As Megan moved slowly around the corner of the couch she was savoring the fear and excitement of the kill. Her Mother cowered, frozen against the frame of the door watching what her daughter had become moving towards her with lethal intentions.

Just before she got within an arm's length I made a fist and released the pent up energy that was stored in one of my kinetic rings. I hadn't used them in some time and simply from the weeks daily motions of walking and the fight early tonight, they were fully charged.

The force lifted Megan off her feet and threw her into the pantry next to my ice box. The door only gave minimal resistance as she crashed through it and into the shelves beyond.

I took this opportunity to roll over the coffee table and grab my duster. I was pulling it on and drawing my blasting rod as Megan emerged from the pantry. Her eyes had gone completely black; her skin was dark red as she glared at me.

It looks like Lash will get to get to redecorate my living room after all.

"Do you think you can stop me? Your tricks and surprises won't work on me like they did my captors. I know you're coming and I know what to expect. Do you?" Megan growled as she nonchalantly brushed the splinters and flour off her ruined dress. Blood was trickling down her forehead and a couple of her fingers were pointing in odd directions.

I took in the situation quickly as Megan stood to her full height and cracked her knuckles, pushing her fingers back into place. Molly was behind Megan and her mother was to my right, sobbing silently in the doorway to my room. Lash was out walking Mouse but still in these tight quarters in an old rickety building, that I happened to live in, I had very few options.

I saw the kitchen door open as Megan rushed me. This time I was ready for her and as she tried to hurtle the back of the couch she slammed into a flat, floor to ceiling wall of force. As she flattened out against the shield I released a small portion of one of my rings into her mother's shoulder, sending her toppling into my room. It's not that I hit her that hard as much as she was resting her weight against the door frame.

Molly tried to rush past Megan to get into my room with Mrs. Forthright and seal the door against her daughter, but Megan was too fast. As Molly came past her Megan's arm flew out slamming against Molly's back sending her face first into my umbrella stand and the wall behind. The contents of the stand were thrown across the floor.

"Well now what do we have here?" Megan asked seeing the two holy swords lying near where Molly had fallen.

"I really wouldn't do that if I were you." I said as she bent down and grabbed the end of the scabbard of Amoracchius. As she began to lift it the sword slid, nearly leapt, out of the scabbard and slid to rest with its hilt against the bricks of my hearth.

"You have such wonderful toys." As she reached for Fidelacchius the Katana separated from its scabbard and slid next to its brother near the fire, its blade lying over the top of Amoracchius. The blades shone in the fire light their razor sharp blades lifted from the leverage of the blade guard on the ground touching the floor butted against the brick of the fire place.

"Megan, it's not too late. If you just stop we can still work this out." Lash said from the kitchen.

"He told me you know. The Master, he told me I wouldn't be able to last long. He tried to get me to feed but I refused and I got weaker. I've been trying so long to hold it back, ignore the hunger but I can't. If I feed then I can rest. If I take your heads to the red king, I'll be royalty and be able to feed. I can't hold it back anymore, I'm too weak. Once I feed, just give in this once, I'll be stronger than I ever was before."

"You'll find my head is harder to take than you would think." I said as she spun to lunge at me again.

She was almost on me when my force bolt caught her in the stomach throwing her back as she reached out to grab me, Mouse crashed into her arms and chest forcing her back and down hard as the dog rebounded off of the shelf above my fireplace.

Megan screamed as a spray of blood flew from her chest and stomach as the two holy swords neatly slid into her back and through her body. The blades sliding on and through bone as her weight forced her down completely onto the swords made a sound that's hard to describe. She tried to gasp but only made a gurgling sound as blood pumped into her lungs. Her eyes were wide and the black contracted to pinpoints as the color returned to her eyes and her flushed skin began to pale in shock.

"Megan!"Her mother screamed, having seen the whole thing from my room. She rushed out of my room but was held back by Molly as she struggled to go to her daughters' side.

"No!" Molly said forcefully with pain and regret in her voice as her eyes welled up with tears. "She can still feed and if she does she'll recover and try to kill us all." Molly said more gently

.

"She's right." Lash said quietly as she moved between the mother and the daughter.

"Mother…"Megan said in a raspy gurgle. "Stay back, please." Blood was running from her mouth as she coughed blood. "I'm sorry. I wasn't strong enough to fight it. I wouldn't have made it. Please forgive me." She said as her face turned to her mothers.

"Megan! Please don't leave me. I Love you so much! Oh God! Please no! God Please!" She sobbed as she dropped to her knees pleading.

Mouse began to growl and barked loudly at Megan as she struggled with the swords still embedded fully in her. The swords began to glow softly at first but then more brightly as the room was illuminated with a bright white light. The swords looked as if made of glass or crystal and had a spot light shining through them.

Megan went limp and she was surrounded by light. She rose off the ground and as she raised the swords slid from her body until just the very tips were still in her skin.

Molly dropped to her knees and took Mrs. Forthright by the hands and began to lead her in a quiet whispered prayer.

I felt a wave of power enter the room, permeating everything. It wasn't magic but it was strong and undeniable. It felt like a velvet wave slamming through the room filling it with power and light. I'm sure if I had opened my sight at that moment I would have been blinded or scarred. I had felt the power of Mab and other extremely powerful beings and this was at least as strong.

As Molly and Mrs. Forthright whispered with their heads bowed the swords began to hum or sing if you will. I can't explain what it sounded like but imagine a thousand voices holding the same note all at once and it's something similar.

I felt the power in the room touch me. It seemed to be asking gently as if knocking on a door in my head. I opened that door and felt soulfire pour from my body to surround the woman I had fought to protect and tried to save. I felt Mouse leaning against my leg and I felt power flow from him as well, mixing with mine to infuse the cocoon of light with intention and power as directed by Mrs. Forthright and Molly's prayer.

Megan's body went rigid as the light began to pulse and from her head, neck and wounds a dark red, nearly black mist began to leave her body and gather over her chest. The darkness formed a demonic face twisted and hateful. It was only there for the briefest moment then with the next pulse it simply diffused, consumed by the light.

The swords fell to the floor and rolled apart as Megan's body slowly drifted to lie between them on the floor. Her wounds were closed she was unconscious. As the light faded and the room went back to its normal dimness there was a knock at my door. Somehow I had expected it.

Molly and Mrs. Forthright sat quietly together softly sobbing. Mouse simply walked over and laid his head on Megan's chest, looking up at her face expectantly as his body plopped down over Amoracchius, laying on the flat of the blade. I quickly moved around the body and people to make my way over to the door.

Lash stood by the door transfixed, seemingly still in shock at what she'd seen as I put a hand on her shoulder and opened the door.

"Good evening Harry, Michael and I were just heading over to his house after a church social and we had extra food, so we thought we'd see if you might be hungry."Father Forthill said with a grin on his face, Michael standing just behind him with an armload of Tupperware containers.

"Um yeah, you might want to come in." I said quietly opening the door for them.

I stepped aside and Father Forthill and Michael entered my house. Lash blinked as they entered and walked towards the back of the couch, her gaze still transfixed on Megan.

"Harry, what's going on here?" Michael asked noticing his daughter in the corner sobbing with an older woman.

"A better question may be why the swords are out." Father Forthill said glancing beyond Lash as he set a bag of casserole leftovers on my counter.

"Harry, you know you can't use them in your spells." Michael said more confused than accusatory.

"I didn't, she lost control and there was a fight but something strange happened." I said scratching my head. "Father if you don't mind could you please, carefully, take a look at the girl for me?" I asked as we entered the living room. As Father Forthill and Michael moved towards the girl Lash and I retrieved our blasting rods and stood ready.

Megan was breathing but still coughing, blood trickling from her mouth and nose as Father Forthill moved close to her, noting the neat rectangular cuts in her clothes and silver scars left by the swords. He checked her pulse by touching her wrist and laid his hand on her head.

"What am I supposed to be checking for?" He asked.

"Vampirism, this girl was bitten by a red court vampire." I told him calmly.

"I see."The priest said as he checked her neck pulled his rosary from his pocket. He began to pray and lay the crucifix across her chest. Megan lay there unconscious as he continued to pray.

Michael went over and gathered his daughter and the confused Mrs. Forthright and took them into the kitchen and began to speak to them quietly.

"Harry, I don't feel it in her anymore." Lash said finally as she watched the priest continue to pray.

Lash and I moved around the couch and stood between the arm chair and the fireplace as we continued to watch. I extended my senses to slowly probe Megan and I didn't feel the hunger within her either.

Finally Father Forthill reached into his robe and pulled out a little vial and removed the cap and tipped it over with his thumb covering the opening and then pressed his thumb to her forehead and mumbled something in Latin and then turned to face me.

"If she was bitten I can only assume she got very lucky. I don't see any of the signs of vampirism in her Harry." Father Forthill said standing slowly. "Now while we put the swords away perhaps you could tell us what happened here." He said looking down at Mouse laying a cross one of the blades.

I told the aging priest what had happened as we cleaned up and put the swords of the cross back in their scabbards and righted the umbrella stand to return them to their place. Then I gently lifted Megan and laid her on the couch.

"So do you think that she's cured?" Mrs. Forthright asked finally after listening to our conversation.

"Well if I understand this correctly, you had asked for divine help when she landed on the swords." Michael said putting a hand on her shoulder. "I find that often one has only to ask to let the Lord do his work. If you interceded on your daughter's behalf and it was her wish to be rid of this, then it's possible that she was healed."

"True enough, but like you said, it had to be her choice in the end as the Lord always gives us a choice." Father Forthill said.

"But she's okay?" She asked hopefully.

"Only time will tell, but right now it looks like she's going to be okay." Father Forthill said kindly.

"That really doesn't change much." I said grimly. "If any of the vampire courts find that she's alive, they'll come after her and you again. You need to make sure that she stays hidden, she needs to disappear."

"I understand that things can't go back to normal but at least this way I don't have to worry about her turning into a monster." She said sounding relieved. "So can anyone tell me what just happened? What was with the lights and swords…?"

"I think it would be best if you simply chalked it up to a miracle and try not to think about it too much." I said winking at Michael.

"So is this just a normal day at work for you, Mr. Dresden?" Mrs. Forthright asked.

"No, this was something special." I said, "Then again my days usually aren't what most people would call normal."

As the group continued to talk, I made my way downstairs and called Edinburgh to report that Megan had lost control and ended up impaled on my living room floor and that the vampire was dead. The operator agreed to pass the information along to the Fellowship of St. Giles and cancel our appointment.

Although what I told them was accurate, for the most part, I didn't feel it necessary for anyone to know that Megan was still alive, at least for now.

When I emerged from my lab Father Forthill was sitting on the couch talking to Mrs. Forthright and Molly was in the kitchen with her dad fixing plates for everyone. Lash and Mouse sat near the fireplace building up the fire to warm my basement apartment.

Don't ask me why but it seems that for the Carpenter family, the answer to any traumatic incident was food. I had to admit that in the past sitting at their dinner table discussing the events of the day had helped me to unwind and make sense of things.

In magical terms, I suppose that the food is a focus they use to help heal and bind family together during hard times. It doesn't matter if you eat it or not, simply having those who care about you, tending to you and being there was what really made the difference. With such powerful and subtle magic surrounding her all her life, I suppose Molly had no choice but to be a wizard.

I've said it before, there's magic everywhere, in a child's laugh, the first spring breeze, or even in a friend or family member taking the time to simply sit quietly by your side when something has gone wrong. This was the Magic that Charity Carpenter had mastered and had taught unwittingly to her husband and children. It may not be considered powerful magic by many, or even classified as magic by many, but if you ask me it's the sort of magic that not only changes lives but can transform the world, one person at a time.

Michael and Molly delivered the plates to everyone and took a seat on the floor next to the coffee table. I sat at the end of the couch near Lash with Mouse between us hoping for food to drop from the table.

At first nobody ate, but as we talked and began to share information and then stories, the mood began to lighten and the food began to disappear. As the conversation began to wind down and we all began to feel fatigued the first rays of dawn shone through my basement windows.

The door to my room opened and a disheveled Megan, her face covered in hair came through the doorway.

"So Hungry…" She murmured.

Lash and I looked at each other and were about to get up then Megan turned and went into the kitchen. There was rustling and clinking and soon she came back to the living room with a heaping plate and sat next to Molly as she started in on the left over casserole and assorted side dishes.

We sat in silence and watched with relief as Megan gorged herself on the mounds of food that her plate could barely contain. When she was finished, she pulled her hair back and noticed everyone watching her.

Suddenly embarrassed Megan blushed, "What? I was hungry." She said defensively.

"I'm just glad to see you're okay." Her mother beamed.

"There's more over there if you're still hungry. Have you tried the apple crisp?" Michael asked kind heartedly.

"Yeah, if you like it you should get some now. It won't last long." Molly said giving me a sidelong glance.

"Well I'd like some, if it's okay." Mrs. Forthright said standing, lifting her plate from the coffee table.

"It is quite good and no sense in it going to waste." Father Forthill said to Mrs. Forthright as he also gathered his plate as he stood slowly.

"Did I see Cinnamon buns over there earlier?" Lash asked glancing towards the kitchen.

As everyone got up to gather their food I grabbed Mouse's leash and we headed outside. As we walked the small strip of grass that passed as the back yard Michael joined us.

"Harry, there you are." He said heartily. Seeing the look on my face he simply walked over and put a hand on my shoulder. "Thinking about Susan?" He asked kindly.

"Yeah, I have to wonder, although it's a long shot and probably a onetime deal, I can't help but wonder if the swords can help her too." I asked at the same time happy for Megan but still feeling a twinge of guilt that I couldn't help Susan.

"Harry, we each have our own paths to follow in this life. Megan's path is different than Susan's. What happened here tonight was by all accounts a miracle, something you can't simply manufacture at will." He said quietly.

"But if it works, if I were to ask for help, there has to be a way." I said quietly.

"Harry, this has nothing to do with you. I know it hurts and it's hard to accept but some things are simply out of your hands. Megan could just as easily have died last night, but that wasn't her fate. If you were to try that again with anyone else, it would end much differently. Harry, after all you've seen and all you've done, you have to know it's the truth." Michael said gently.

"I know and I really am happy for Megan and her family, but still."

"Harry, you've met an arch angel, saved the city more times than I can count and all that with no thanks or personal gain. Tell me Harry, why do you do it?"

I stood there stunned for a moment. Nobody had ever asked me that before, except maybe Bob. I had never really asked myself why I do it, I just did what needed to be done.

"Partly out of pride I suppose, it bugs me when people come to the city I live in and start mayhem. Mostly, I do it because there are good and innocent people out there who don't deserve to have their lives flipped upside down or ended by maniacs." I said "That and if I don't do it, who will?"

"So it's your choice? You put yourself in harm's way for others of your own free will? Why don't you just let the police handle it?"

"I sound crazy when you put it that way, but yes. Even with Murphy and the rest of SI out there doing what they can, some things they can't handle and I need to step in." I said.

"Have you ever thought that you are in the right place at the right time for a reason?" He asked giving me a slight smile.

"I know you and Father Forthill have your schedules modified so coincidence and happenstance brings you where you're needed but I don't believe that my life is dictated by anyone Fae or heavenly." I said.

"Not dictated, simply guided. You are under no obligation to take any actions you don't want to. However, knowing you, if you happen upon someone being attacked by a monster or a mugger, it's in your nature to step in. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Well yeah. I'm not going to sit back and watch someone get hurt."

"What about Susan? Megan would be as likely to run away to get help as she would to get hurt if she were to step into a bad situation, Susan as I remember was able to handle herself even before she was bitten."

"Susan was smart about those things. She knew what she could and couldn't handle, most of the time." I said.

"Right now, not knowing where she is, do you believe she's sitting on the sidelines or making a difference wherever she is?" He asked with that twinkle in his eye.

"I know she's fighting and trying to help. What's your point?" I asked.

"Simply that this may be where Susan needs to be right now. Megan needs to be here, they have different paths. I don't know what Susan is destined for, only he knows that, but I'm sure her life as it is now will make a difference for the better."

"So I need to have a little faith?"

"You already do, you simply refuse to acknowledge it my friend." Michael said with a grin, slapping me on the shoulder.

"So do you think I'm destined to get more paying jobs in the future?" I asked.

"You have to meet him half way on that one, seek and you shall find." Michael said shaking his head. "We should be getting back inside."

I have to admit, I'm not one for faith but talking to Michael gave me some perspective. I hate it that I can't help Susan and I'm a little jealous of the Forthright's getting their loved one back while mine is still out there fighting the hunger every day. I think what hurts the most is that there's nothing I can do for her. It's the helplessness that bothers me. I'm a wizard and have saved hundreds but the one I tried the hardest to save, I can't. Then again, Megan is a good kid and for a politician's family, they are good people and genuinely seem to love each other. I could never hold bad feelings for their good fortune. It's just the irony.

As I closed the door and raised my wards Lash and Molly were in the kitchen cleaning up and putting things away as Father Forthill, Megan and her Mother were in the living room deep in conversation.

"Harry, could you join us?" asked Father Forthill.

I came around the couch and took the high back arm chair next to the couch.

"Harry, I've been talking to Megan and her Mother. I know that Megan needs to disappear and I may be able to help." He said solemnly.

"That's great." I said.

"I can send her to live in another town with a new name, under the auspices of the church. She's too old to easily put into a family so we were thinking of giving her a job in a church facility, possibly a nunnery." He continued. "It would limit her exposure to the outside world and being on holy ground surrounded by priests and nuns it should keep the darker elements away as well." He finished.

"So long as we are careful we can exchange letters and maybe even see her on occasion." Mrs. Forthright said brightly.

"We'll help with funeral arrangements for Megan to ensure that it's publicized that she's dead to keep everyone off her trail. If all goes as planned we can have her sent out of town in a day or two before the funeral." Father Forthill finished.

"Harry, we wanted to run it past you to get your opinion. You've been the only person I've been able to trust since this started." Megan said quietly as gentle scarlet warmth caressed her cheeks.

"I've known the father for some time and he can definitely be trusted. If he says he can do it then I have no doubts that he can. It sounds like he's thought of everything, it's a good plan if you don't mind living in a nunnery." I finished with a smirk.

"Then it's settled." Megan said beaming at her mother and the aged priest.

"For Megan's safety we'll want to keep her at the Carpenters home until we can move her. Molly would you mind keeping an eye on her for me until we can make arrangements?" the priest asked over his shoulder where Molly had joined the group.

"Sure, it'll be fun, like a sleepover!" Molly said smiling at Megan.

"Mr. Dresden, could you be on call for my daughter until she's safely out of town?" Mrs. Forthright asked.

"I'd be happy to." I said as Lash put her hand on my shoulder moving to the side of the chair.

"We'd both be happy to help any way we can." Lash said smiling.

"It's been a long night and I think we could all use some rest." Michael said. "Molly can you hide Megan for the ride home?"

"If you could drop me at the church I have some calls to make." Father Forthill said just now starting to show the fatigue of staying up all night.

"I can drop you, it would be the least I can do." Mrs. Forthright said. "It's on the way."

"Thank you, that's very kind." The father said.

As Megan was gathering what little she had at my apartment there was a knock at my door.

Molly and Megan hid in my bedroom as I opened the door. There was a man in a black suit and drivers cap on my stoop.

"Is this the Dresden residence?" he asked looking past me into my small apartment.

"It is." I replied.

"I'm here for Mrs. Forthright, I'm her driver." he said professionally.

"One moment Charles, I'll be right with you." Mrs. Forthright said from the living room as she gathered her jacket and purse.

"Shall we?" She said to the priest.

It was odd seeing Father Forthill climb into the back of a limo, even odder to see one in my neighborhood, but it was early yet. I'm sure none of my neighbors had seen the posh car drive away with a well dressed woman and a priest.

Molly, Michael and an invisible Megan followed the limo into the early morning light in Michaels large truck with Carpenter Construction splayed across the side.

Lash and I went into my room for some much needed down time and slept well into the afternoon.

A few days Later Molly came over early in the morning and let us know that Megan had made it off safely and Father Forthill had followed up to let them know she had arrived safely. As we talked there was a knock on my door.

I peeped through the peephole of the heavy security door that Michael had put in some time ago and found the driver Charles on my doorstep.

I opened the door, dropping the wards and he simply said, "This is for you. It's from the Senator." Handing me a sealed envelope with Mr. Dresden penned in flawless handwriting. Then he turned and left.

I opened the bulging envelope to find it stuffed with hundred dollar bills and a letter.

Dear Wizard Dresden,

I know my daughter had hired you when she had nowhere else to turn. Please accept this small token as your fee for services rendered. We can never repay you for your help, but please accept our sincere thanks.

Please feel free to call upon us if you ever have a need.

Sincerely

The Forthright family

"Harry, that was nice of them!" Lash said reading the letter from my side.

"This will cover rent and expenses for a long time." I said smiling at her.

"So what's next on the agenda?" Molly asked.

"It is Monday. I should really get back to the office." I told her. "Who knows maybe I have another case waiting for me." Somehow I knew I was going to regret that statement.


End file.
